Experience of German Methodist preachers

'■"f-I't

Gc M. L.

929.102

M56m

1475226

GENEALOGY COLLECTION

ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY

3 1833 01149 0015

EXPERIENCE

GERMAl METHODIST PREACHERS.

COLLECTED AND ARRANGED

BY REV. ADAM MILLER, M. D.

■WITH AN

INTRODUCTION BY CHARLES ELLIOTT, D. D.,

PRELIMIlfAEY DISOOUESE BY L. L. HAMLINE, D. D.

EDITED BY D. W. CLAEK, D. D.

CINCINNATI:

PRINTED AT THE METHODIST BOOK CONCERN,
rOE THE AUTHOR.

E. P. THOMPSON, PEINTEK.
1859.

Entered, according to Act of Congress, in tbc year 1859,

BY ADAM MILLER,

Id the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District
of Obio.

1475226
PREFACE.

The narratives contained in the following pages

were furnished me by their respective authors,

nearly all of whom wrote in the German language.

In making the translations into English, slight

^ changes in the phraseology have, in a few instances,

^ been made, yet not so as to convey any meaning

'•^ different from that intended by the author. The

translations, it is admitted, might have been made

'^ to wear a smoother English dress; but it was

^ thought best to change the peculiar idioms and

^ forms of expression as little as possible. In a few

-^ instances I have been compelled to abridge the

4 communications, where a detailed account of the

^ progress of the German mission work was given,

n But most of all I regret being compelled to omit

<» several sketches, lest the work should be extended

I to undue proportions.

° My object has been to present to the public a
** volume of experience, in reference to a very im-
^ portant point in the character of a Christian min-
^ ister — an evangelical conversion. The question has
sometimes been asked, "Where did the Methodist
Church get all these German preachers?" And
some, not very friendly to our operations among
the Germans, have come to the conclusion that they

4 PREFACE.

•were mostly disaffected or refused preachers from
other denominations, and therefore not to be relied
upon. The reader will find in the following pages
that these men have been mostly awakened, con-
verted, and brought forward into the ministry ac-
cording to the customs and usages of the Methodist
Episcopal Church. lie will not fail to notice that
this work has gradually increased till our German
missionaries are in almost every part of our country
where German settlements have been made.

There are often allusions to the Lutheran Church,
and to the loose morals of her clergymen. These
have reference to the National Church in Germany,
where unconverted, and often ungodly, ministers are
placed over the people. The Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America is in a very different condition ;
and among the so-called " New measure party "
there is much of the life and power of true godli-
ness. There has also been a great change in Ger-
many within the last ten or fifteen years. A new
spiritual life is diSusing itself throughout the Na-
tional Church, and the light of divine truth is gradu-
ally dispelling the clouds of a rationalistic philosophy.

AuAJi Miller.

MoUKT Pi.EASAXT, loWA, ,.

January 17, 1859.

INTRODUCTION.

I TAKE great pleasure in introducing to the Amer-
ican public the following volume, which contains nar-
ratives of remarkable conversions to God, and these
so connected Avith a cause that has told, and will tell,
I doubt not, to great advantage on the evangelization
of Germans in America; and this seems no more
than a mere introduction to what is to be accomplished
in Germany itself. Since the rise of this great
movement we see the beginnings of others of a
smaller character among the various branches of the
Scandinavian people, whose first converts in America
are even now laboring in the father-lands for the
conversion of their brethren there.

As introductory to this volume, I will take leave to
present a few historical remarks in reference to
Wesley's first acquaintance with the Germans, as well
as some observations on the theme of Dr. Miller's
narrative.

In the year 1735, on the 14th day of October, Mr.
Wesley set sail from England as a missionary to
America. On the 17th day of the same month he
commenced the study of the German language, in
order to converse with the Germans, twenty-six of
whom were on board. On the 21st he joined with

6 INTRODUCTION.

the Germans in their pul)lic services. On Sabbath,
January 25th, while the ship encountered a terrible
storm, and serious apprehensions Avcre felt for the
safety of the ship, he saw the pious Germans calm
amidst the ragings of the storm, and found, upon
inquiry, that their calmness was owing to their strong
faith in God's mercy, which he then felt and acknowl-
edged he had not. After his arrival in America on
the 7th of February, Mr. Spangenberg put some close
questions to Mr. "Wesley, in reference to his accept-
ance Avith God through a living faith in Christ, and
on the following Monday related to him his own
experience, which had a further effect to awaken
"Wesley to the knowledge of the great truth by which
he afterward awakened all England from spiritual
lethargy.

After an absence of more than two years, Mr.
Wesley returned to England, declaring that he had
gone to America to convert the Indians, and in the
mean time learned from these pious Germans that he
was not converted himself. On the 4th of March,
1738, Mr. "Wesley found Peter Boehler with his brotlicr
at Oxford, "by whom," says he, "in the hand of the
great God, on Saturday, the 5th, I was clearly
convinced of unbelief, of the want of that faith
whereby alone we are saved with the full Christian
salvation."

The instructions given to Mr. Wesley by this
pious German minister were of great advantage to
him. Under the ministrations of Boehler, Wesley
commenced preaching, as he called it, the " new

INTRODUCTION. 7

doctrine." On the 26tli of April, 1738, he says:
"Peter Boehler walked with me a few miles, and
exhorted me not to stop short of the grace of God;"
and Wednesday, May 3d, he says : " My brother had
a long and particular conversation with Peter Boehler,
and it now pleased God to open his eyes, so that he
also saw clearly what was the nature of that one true
living faith whereby alone, 'through grace, we are
saved.' "

Not satisfied with these frequent interviews with
the pious Germans, whom he had met in America and
England, he resolved to visit Germany; and accord-
ingly, on the 13th of June, 1738, he set out with the
view of visiting the pious German Moravians at
Herrnhutt. On his arrival among these German
Moravians Mr. Wesley gained increasing light and
strength, and translated some of their hymns into the
English language. The 437th hymn in our standard
Hymn-Book is one of these. The original is intro-
duced into the German Hymn-Book as the 18th.

When Mr. Wesley returned to England, preaching
the doctrine of justification by faith in Christ, the
Lord owned and blessed his labors, so that in a few
years a host of strong men were raised up, both in
and out of the Established Church, who stood as
living witnesses to the truths they taught.

Mr. Wesley at an early day collected accounts of
the awakening and conversion of a number of his
fellow-laborers, and published a book called the
"Preachers' Experience." And now, after a little
over one hundred years, we have seen Methodism

8 INTRODUCTION.

spreading over England and America, and over many
of the isles of the seas and foreign lands. While
God has long permitted us to enjoy these blessings as
a nation speaking the English language, he finally has
also opened a highway for the introduction of the
doctrine and usages of Methodism in this as well as in
the father-land. Our missionaries are now traveling
over some of the same ground, and preaching and dis-
tributing books and tracts in the same towns and cities
through which Wesley traveled over a hundred years
ago. The materials for the following work have been
collected, translated, and arranged by Dr. Miller, to
show the true Wesleyan and spiritual character of
these missionary labors. The Methodist Church,
both in England and America, owes a debt to Ger-
many which she ought to pay.

In the following work we have not only an account
of the awakening, conversion, and call to the minis-
try of a number of our most prominent German
missionaries, but also such explanations and remarks
as to give the reader a correct synopsis of the rise
and progress of our missions among the Germans.
There are also to be found in this work some remark-
able instances of the awakening and conversion of
some of the private members of the Church, showing
how the grace of God was manifested in sustaining
them under the persecutions which they were com-
pelled to endure.

As Dr. Miller was himself one among the first
missionaries, and the first native-born American who
joined Dr. Nast in his labors among his countrymen,

INTEODUCTION. 9

and as he appears to have been led into this work
bj a remarkable providence, he has very properly
given his own experience more in detail than others.
Having myself had a knowledge of the community
to which he refers, and of the strictness of their
rules, it may be considered a great manifestation of
God's grace to deliver him from this darkness and
bring him into the light of the Gospel.

But I must not enlarge. Let the reader peruse
this volume, and he will find an amount of matter
respecting religious awakenings and conversions of a
truly-apostolic character. It is a book for America,
Germany, and England. It should be bought and
read by many thousands in these countries. I need
not exhort any here to buy this book, for I am confi-
dent that it will be bought and read in great numbers.
It will tell its own story and dijSVise a good spirit in
the mind of every reader. And yet I believe it is
only a mere introductory narrative of what Avill be-
come one of the most important religious movements
of the evangelical and orthodox Church of Christ.

CuARLES Elliott.

Iowa Wesleyan University, January 1, 1859.

CONTENTS.

Preface Page 3

Inteoduction ^

Preliminary Discourse 19

CHAPTER I.

Adam Miller: Birth — Removal to Ohio — Society of Mennonites—
Education and training — Methodist preaching — Sent to English
school — Learns the nature of true religion — Awakened— Spiritual
exercises — Leaves the Mennonites — Joins the Methodist Church-
Conversion — Sickness and death of his grandfather — Licensed to
exhort — Attends camp meeting at Canton — Incidents — Family
Prayer — Conversion of his sister, and of other members of the fam-
ily — Leaves home — Goes to Knox county — Licensed to preach—
Recommended to annual conference — Is received and appointed to
Nicholas circuit, Virginia — Incidents 43

CHAPTER II.

Adam Miller: Determines to study the German— Finds William
Nast Desires from him instruction in German — Takes him to Vir-
ginia—Incidents on the way— Translation of Methodist ritual and
General Rules into German— Return of "William Nast to Ohio-
Perseveres in the study of German— Attempts at German preach-
ing—Conversion of brother Nast— Visits him— Brother Nast li-
censed to preach— Removal to Greenville circuit, Ohio— Voyage
down the Kanawha— Hardships of the itinerant life— Means of
support — Poverty — Commencement of German missions — Unprom-
ising beginning— Dr. Nast's labors— Incidents— Appointed to Mil-
ford circuit— German preaching in Cincinnati— Missionary labors-
First sacramental service in the German mission— Christian Apol-
ogist established— Spread of the German work 59

CHAPTER III.

William Nast: Birth and training— Religious tutelage— Confirma-
tion— Death of his father— Education for tho ministry — Dr.

12 CONTENTS.

StransF — Rationftlistio associations — University life — Becomes a
Pantheist and freo-thinkor — Tlopays the expenses of his odtication —
Literary labors — Migrates to America — Learns English — Acquaint-
ance with Methodists — Resides at West Point — Is converted from
his skepticism — Attends Methodist preaching — Awakening — At-
tends camp meeting — Is encouraged by his friends — Is cmploj-ed as
teacher in Kcnyon College — Religious efforts — Conversion — License
to jircach — Admission into conference — Establishment of the first
German mission Pack 76

CHAPTER IV.

John SwAni.KX: Religious training — Confirmation — Emigrates to
America — Awakening — Attends Methodist preaching — Is con-
verted — Licensed to exhort — Sent out as missionary — Yisifs Wheel-
ing — Receives license to preach — Admitted into conference — First
German Methodist church built — Labors and success S9

CHAPTER V.

G. A. Breuxig: Birth — Catholic training — Confession to the priest —
Loose notions of religion — Character of the ministry and people —
Awakening — Comes to America — Determines to lead a new life —
Is instructed by a Lutheran friend — Reads the Bible — Suspects the
errors of Romanism — Still continues to attend mass — Prefers Prot-
estant worship — Visited by a priest — Mental conflicts — Desires to
find the truth — Abandons Romanism — Finds religious associates —
Evangelical Lutherans — Prayer meetings — Conversion — Attends the
Methodist meetings — Joins the Church — Is licensed as eshortor
and local preacher — Admitted into conference — Labors as a mis-
sionary 93

CHAPTER VI.

William AniiKSs: Childhood — Education — Confirmation — Habits of
life — The Church — Convictions of sin — Worldly amusements — Mo-
rality — Moral weakness — Providentially saved from death — Mi-
grates to this country — Arrival — Visits Cincinnati — Boards with a
Methodist family — Is awakened — Seeks for salvation — Mental dis-
tress — Deliverance and conversion — Joins the Church — Becomes a
preacher — Missionary labors 105

CHAPTER VII.

ENOELnARDT RiEMKXScnNEiDEB: Birth — Loaves home — Is awakened —
Joins the Church— Spiritual distress— Visits Pittsburg— Conver-
sion — Call to the ministry — Licensed as oxhortcr — As preacher —
Joins the conference ll'J

CONTENTS. 13

CHAPTER VIII.

Lttdtvig S. Jacoby: Early experience — Comes to America — Attends
German Methodist Church — Awakening — Repentance — Joins the
Church — Conversion — Called to the ministry — Becomes exhorter —
Becomes preacher — Sent to St. Louis — Commences the mission —
Incidents — Erection of church — Foreign mission Page 125

CHAPTER IX.

C. H. DoERiNG: Birth — Confirmation — Customs of the Church — Leaves
home — Studies English — Comes to this country — Settles in "Wheel-
ing — Besides in a Methodist family — Attends Methodist meeting —
Awakening — Conversion — License to exhort — Enters Alleghany
College — Becomes a preacher — Joins conference 137

CHAPTER X.

G. L. Mulfingee: Training — Religious experience — Removes to Amer-
ica — Skepticism — Awakening — Conversion — New thoughts and de-
sires — Temptations — Becomes an exhorter — Becomes a preacher —
Joins conference 146

CHAPTERXI.

H. Koeneke: Early life — Habits — Seeks for religious associations —
Meets with pious people — Repentance — Opposition from his wife —
Is converted, with his wife — Comes to America — Settles in Wheel-
ing — Becomes a Methodist — Licensed to preach — Incidents — Suc-
cess of German missions .- 157

CHAPTER XII.

G. Danker: Early religious experience — Awakening and conversion —
Enters the ministry — Comes to America — Unites with the Meth-
odists — Received as a minister — Mission labors. Charles Hel-
wiG: Birth and education — Emigrates to America — Attends evan-
gelical worship — Unites with the Methodist Church — Licensed as
preacher and joins conference. J, H. Baheenburg: Early train-
ing — Awakening — Conversion— Comes to this country — Joins the
Methodists — Is licensed to preach — Enters tho traveling min-
istry 174

CHAPTER XIII.

Peter "Wilkins: Education — Leaves home — Teaches school — Death
of his sister — Comes to America — Hears evangelical preaching — Is

14 CONTENTS.

awakened and converted — Licensed to preach — Joins the confer-
ence Page 183

CHAPTER XIV.

CnARLF.s Koexkke: Migrates to this country — Goes to Methodist
meetings — Is awakened — Conversion — Joins the Church — Licensed
to preach — Enters conference — Incidents. Jons A. Klein: Birth
and education — Comes to America — Attends meeting and joins tho
Methodist Church — Thrown into wicked associations — Persecuted
by his family — Led astray — Becomes hardened — Is awakened —
Conversion — Awakening and conversion of his parents and broth-
ers — Enters the ministry 189

CHAPTER XV.

Lewis Nippert: Removal to America — Religious trainings-Awaken-
ing and conversion of friends — Lutheran prejudices — Conversion of
his parents — Enmity to Methodism — Is awakened, converted, and
unites with tho Church — Goes to Cincinnati and learns the art of
printing — Becomes a preacher — Enters confercnec — Missionary to
Germany. Philip Kuhl: Early training — Comes to America — Ig-
norance of true religion — Goes to New Orleans — Returns to his
parents in Illinois — Attends evangelical churches — Incidents —
Awakening and conversion — Becomes acquainted with and joins
the Methodist Church — Call to tho ministry — Licensed to exhort
and to preach — Joins tho conference 199

CHAPTER XVI.

Jony Bier: Early life — Education — Removal to America — Attends
Methodist meetings — Convicted of sin — Is awakened — Tempta-
tions — Deliverance — Is converted — Joins tho Church — Labors
among his associates — Call to the ministry — Preparatory labors —
Incident — Licensed to preach — Enters conference — Incidents... 212

CHAPTER XVII.

Nicholas Nuhfer: Educated in tho Catholic Church — Mcota with tho
Bible — Comes to America — Convicted of sin — Endeavors to repent —
Is instructed in tho truth — Attends Methodist meetings — Opposi-
tion from his mother — Begins family worship — Is converted — Joins
the Church — Enters tho ministry. J. II. Bartr: Early life — Re-
moval to this country — Lciirns English — Death of his father in
great peace — Goes to Louisville — Hears German Methodist preach-
ing — Is awakened — Goes to class meeting — Unites with the Church —
Convorsion — Enters the ministry 223

CONTENTS. 15

CHAPTER XVIII.

William Schreck: Birth and education — Comes to America — Lives in
a Methodist family — Attends Methodist worship — Awakening —
Conversion — Call to the ministry — Joins the Church and enters the
ministry. John Plank: Birth and early training — Emigrates to
America — Opposition to Methodism — Long-continued sickness —
Removal to northern Missouri — Relapse of sickness — Awakening —
Temptations — Conversion — Enters the ministry. Casper Jost: Ed-
ucated in the Catholic faith — Comes to America and settles in Mis-
souri — Goes to Protestant meeting — Visits the Methodist church —
Awakened and converted — Joins the Church — Licensed to exhort
and preach — Enters the ministry Page 236

CHAPTER XIX.

Charles Schelper: Emigrates to this country — Attends Methodist
meetings — Is awakened and converted — Enters the ministry. Se-
bastian Barth: Attends Methodist service — Awakening — Joins the
Church — Conversion — Becomes colporteur — Enters the ministry.
Herman Koch: Comes to this country — Awakening — Goes to Meth-
odist preaching and class meetings — Conversion — Ministry and mis-
sionary labors. John Mann: Awakening — Seeking for pardon — •
Conversion — Called to preach — Is received into conference 248

CHAPTER XX.

John Phetzing: Birth — Religious instruction — Comes to America —
Settles in Wheeling — Conviction of sin — Goes to class meeting —
Joins the Church — Awakening — Conversion — Visit to Germany —
Incidents — Returns to America — Enters the ministry. Conrad
Gahn: Childhood — Religious impressions — Emigrates to America —
Methodist meetings — Convictions of sin — Penitential sorrow — Con-
version — Unites with the Church — Call to the ministry — Licensed
as exhorter and preacher — Enters the conference 256

CHAPTER XXI.

John Haas: Residence in St. Louis — Sends children to Sunday
school — Family attends Methodist meetings — Is induced to go with
them — Awakening — Conversion — Call to the ministry — Joins the
conference. William Fiegenbaum: Comes to America — Early im-
pressions — Hears Methodist preaching — Is awakened and con-
verted — Called to preach — Joins conference. John L. Walther:
Early training — Rationalistic instruction — Emigration to Amer-
ica — Companions of the voyage — Incident — Removal to Cincin-

16 CONTENTS.

nati — Attends Methodist meeting — Conversion of his wife — Unites
•with the Church — Becomes a backslider — Piety of his wife — Her-
sickness — He is awakened — Conversion — Reunites with the Church —
Enters the ministry Page 270

CHAPTER XXII.

J. M. Winkler: Reared in the Catholic faith — Becomes an altar-at-
tendant on the priest — Death of his mother — Conversation with
his father — Conversation with the priest — Incident — Confirmation —
Reads the Bible — Ceases to go to confession — Incident — Letters
from America — Determines to emigrate — Goes once more to con-
fession — Ridiculous penance imposed on him — Sets out for this
country — Storm on the ocean — Arrival and settlement — Methodist
influences — Awakening — Conversion — Persecuted by his friends —
Enters the ministry — His father comes to America — Incident — Con-
version of his father — Mission work 284

CHAPTER XXIII.

Chaeles Augustus Emmanuel Heetel: Nativity — Training — Re-
markable providence — Death of his father — Confirmed — Amuse-
ments — Studies — Enters the army — Leaves it for the university —
Irreligious associations — Death of his mother — Goes into busi-
ness — Emigrates to America — Methodist preaching — Conversion —
Call to the ministry — Sickness — Marriage — Licensed to preach —
Ministerial labors 297

CHAPTER XXIV.

Geoege Andee: Comes to America — Attendance at Church — Skei>-
ticism — Awakening — Conversion — Enters the ministry — Missionary
labors. Eeedeeic Kopp: Birth and training — Letters from Amer-
ica — Desire to migrate — Comes to this country — Settles in AVis-
consin — German Methodist preaching — Awakening — Conversion —
Call to the ministry — Enters conference — Missionary influence.
IIeney Henke: Education — Religious impressions — Comes to Amer-
ica — Settles in AVhecling — Hears Methodist preaching — Awaken-
ing, conversion, and call to the ministry ^ 309

CHAPTER XXV.

John Schmidt: Comes to America — Wanderings — Stops in Louis-
ville — Lives in a Methodist family — Is awakened— Converted —
Enters the ministry. Henet Kolbe: Emigrates to this country —
Attends Methodist preaching— Spiritual exercises— Conversion —
Encouraged to preach — Joins the conference — Missionary labors.

CONTENTS. 17

Geokge Boeshenz: Early training— Comes to this country— Mar-
riage— Attends Lutheran and Methodist iireaching— Awakening-
Seeking the Savior— Conversion— Call to the ministry Page 323

CHAPTER XXVI.

Erhaedt Wundeelich: Birth— Education— Eationalism— Comes to
America— Determines to lead a new life— Is awakened— Joins the
Methodist Church by a singular mistake— Its benefit to him— Con-
version-Return to Germany— Conversations on religion— Begins
to proclaim Christ— Persecuted by the people— Opposed by the gov-
ernment— Incident— Returns to this country— Enters the minis-
try—Influence of his labors at his old home. Chaeles A. Mil-
itzer: Birth and education— Religious impressions— Hears Erhardt
Wunderlich preach— Is awakened and converted— Is licensed to
preach— Comes to this country 337

CHAPTER XXVII.
Petee Moklling: Enters a monastery— Studies for the priesthood-
Life at the Gymnasium— Religious instruction— Meets with Prot-
estant books— Reads the Bible— Interrupted in its perusal— Reflec-
tions— Desires light— Biblical interpretations— Talk with the. un-
der-regent— Is put into confinement— Doubts— Lecture of the pre-
bendary—Goes home— Protestant help— Returns to the cloister-
Interview with the regent— Escapes from the monastery— Attends
Protestant worship— Comes to America— Religious experience-
Attends Methodist preaching— Hears the Gospel— Is converted—
Joins the Methodist Church 347

CHAPTER XXVIII.

Frederic Heller: Early training— Awakening— Conversion— Temp-
tations— Comes to America— Becomes careless— Is again awak-
ened—Is restored to spiritual life— Joins Church— Is licensed to
exhort— Enters the ministry. H. Fiegenbaum: Emigrates to Amer-
ica—In the wilderness— Methodist preaching— Goes to St. Louis—
Converted— Joins Church— Call to the ministry— Enters conference.
Fredeeic W. Flocken: Education— Comes to this country— Hears
Methodist preaching— Awakening-Conversion— Enters the min-
istry— Sent as missionary to Bulgaria 363

CHAPTER XXIX.

R. Shobe: Early life— Religious experience— Comes to America-
Hears Methodist preaching-Unites with the Methodist Church—
Euteiv, the ministry-Missionary labors. Rudoli-j Havighobst:

18 CONTENTS.

Education — Migrates to this country — Religious impressions — Sick-
ness — Methodist preaching — Awakening — Conversion — Becomes a
preacher. Theodore Miller: Birth and training — Migration to
America — Is awakened — Joins the Church — Is converted and li-
censed to preach Page 376

CHAPTER XXX.

(Jeorge a. Retiter: Comes to America — Attends camp meeting —
Conversion of his wife — Ho is awakened and converted — Joins tho
Methodist Church — Preaches at a funeral — Enters conference.
Paul Brodbeck: Catholic training — Marries a Methodist girl — At-
tends Methodist preaching — Awakened and converted — Persecu-
tion — Enters the ministry. Frederic Schuler: Nativity — Emi-
gration — Methodist preaching — Awakening and conversion — Enters
conference. Henry Ellerbeck: Early life-^Comes to America —
Methodist preaching— Conversion — Joins conference 387

CHAPTER XXXI.

Frederic Merten: Religious impressions — Conversion — Irreligious
surroundings — Becomes cold in religion — Quickened again unto
life — Joins the Methodist Church — Preaches and receives license — •
Enters conference. Christian Nachtrieb: Early life — Comes to
America — Awakening and conversion — Temptations — Enters con-
ference. Gerhard Timken: Migration — Conversion — Licensed to
preach — Enters conference. H. Schnittker: Birth — Religious
training — Comes to America — Camp meeting — Conversion — Back-
slides — Is reclaimed — Enters the ministry 400

CHAPTER XXXII.
Statistics op German Methodism 415

EXPERIENCE

GEEMAN METHODIST PEEACHEES.

PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.

BY EEV. L. L. HAMLINE, D. D.

THE DUTY OF BELIEVING AND CONFESSING.

With the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the
mouth confession is made unto salvation. — Romans x, 10.

It is true, as Christ has said, that "Wisdom is
justified of her children." Those doctrines of the
Christian revelation which annoy the unregenerate,
become as "marrow and fatness" to them who are
born of God. The believer can bear witness. Per-
haps, before conversion, nothing perplexed him more
than faith; whereas, after conversion, nothing filled
him with greater admiration. Then he could realize
the force of those words, "Believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ, and thou shalt be saved." "He that believeth
on the Son hath everlasting life."

Confession, as well as faith, is to many a " stone
of stumbling." Christians attach an importance to
both, which, in the view of unbelievers, is wholly
unaccountable. Unsanctified reason is confounded
that righteousness should be wrapped up in faith, and

20 GERMAN MISSIONAHIES.

salvation be made to liinge on confession. Yet God
has so ordained. And if these connections are
mysterious and even repulsive to the unbelieving,
they are simple as well as grateful to him who enjoys
their saving benefits : " The secret of the Lord is
with them that fear him, and he will show them his
covenant."

The text presents for discussion faith and con-
fession, with the Scriptural relations or dependen-
cies of each.

I. Faith — that faith which is "unto righteous-
ness " — is, in *the , language of the text, believing
"with the heart." In other words, it is such a be-
lief in divine revelation as involves not only a con-
viction of its truth, but a hearty delight in it. As
thus defined, it is,

1. Simple belief. This is an ofiice of the mind.
It is the mere perception of truth as such, regardless
of its bearing on our interests or affections. Applied
to Christianity, it is crediting the Scriptures as a
divine revelation, with all the truths which their just
interpretation inculcates; and especially those Gos-
pel statements which may be aptly called the test
truths of the system, one of which is named in the
context : " If thou slialt confess with thy mouth the
Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that
God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be
saved." Not that crediting this isolated fact would
save a man, but that the confession of this off"ensive
feature of the Gospel, in the face of persecution, im-
plied a full Christian faith. But, according to the
text, saving faith is more than this simple belief.
It is,

PKELIMINAEYDISCOUESE. 21

2. Believing '■^tvith the hearth It is gust as well
as vision. It not only credits, but relishes the truths
of revelation. It is not only convinced, for instance,
that Christ is risen from the dead, but, like Mary at
the sepulcher, \b joyfidlij convinced; and, in the sur-
prise of rapt affection, cries out "vvith Thomas, " My
Lord and my God!" Let us dwell a moment on
this feature of saving faith.

Propositions addressed to men's understandings
produce a great variety of inward states — in the
mind — among others — belief and unbelief; and in the
affections, gratification and regret. How various the
effects produced by a series of reports made to an
avaricious merchant concerning one of his ships at
sea — as, first, that she is lost, with crew and cargo;
which, believed, inflicts pain. Second, that she out-
rode the storm, and is safe, which, (disbelieved, pro-
duces equal disappointment. But at last the ship
comes in, and the commander in person reports her
safety and successes. This is credited with joy.

The first is an example of speculative faith, like
his who credits Christianity, but feels that it is a
sentence of condemnation to him. Of such there are
thousands. They are not the absolutely stupid, who
scarcely take the pains to believe or disbelieve ; but
are persons of more serious convictions, whose faith
disturbs their consciences — who, moved by the Spirit,
concede the truth of Christianity with some solici-
tude, but find their tastes and views of interest at
war with their convictions. Their belief iviiliout the
heart is an important element of faith; but, of itself,
it can neither comfort nor save. It belongs in com-
mon to anxious sinners, undone reprobates, and fallen

22 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

angels — " Thou believest there is one God ; thou do-
est well. The devils also believe and tremble."

It may be questioned if the second example ap-
plies to our theme. Yet there are men who say they
wish to believe the Bible, if they could find reason-
able proofs of its divine inspiration. "Wish to be-
lieve and can not!" It is possible. For we learn
that men may "resist the Holy Ghost" — may resist
till they are forsaken to blindness of mind — are given
"over to believe a lie." Then light becomes dark-
ness, and darkness light unto them. They who
"would believe the Bible, if they could," should look,
alarmed, into their own religious history, and consider
if they have not armed themselves against believing.
They Avho first " turn away their ears from hearing
truth," may at last "5e turned unto fables." If we
struggle for years to disbelieve the Gospel, no won-
der that, God-forsaken, we at last make it out.

The third example illustrates saving faith, which,
as stated, is the joyful belief of Gospel truth —
which credits Christian doctrine as the testimony of
God, and exults over it as good news from heaven.
Such faith the Psalmist had : " Thy word is very pure ;
therefore thy servant loveth it." " I rejoice at thy
word as one that findeth great spoil."

3. This faith has Scriptural limits. As a specula-
tion, it credits all Bible truth; as an afi'ection, it
relishes or delights in all. The believing heart is
docile. It first seeks to know, and then " receives
with meekness the ingrafted word." There is an
easy faith, which, not content with the old, sets itself
to frame a new Bible. It expurgates and adds. It
fondly canonizes one series of texts and sharpens

PKBLIMINARTDISCOUESE. 23

criticism against another series. It is a bold opera-
tor. It leans with composure over the Bible ; moves
and cuts, light-fingered, through and through its
pages; and in its progress makes and unmakes
worlds, quenches and kindles hells, or changes the
date and venue of these small things at pleasure !

True faith is quite another thing. It will not have
a syllable added or blotted in God's book. It abhors
all expurgations. It will not tolerate tradition as a
supplement to Scripture. Its language is, "The
Bible, the whole Bible, and notJiing hut the Bi-
ble !" He who has this faith can say, " I love thy
commandments above gold; yea, above fine gold."
"How sweet is thy word unto my taste! yea, sweeter
than honey to my mouth."

4. This faith embraces self-application. What it
credits it also appropriates to its legitimate end;
otherwise it could not be a hearty faith. How can
we cordially embrace the averments, while we decline
the Gospel uses, of God's truth? Does not the same
authority which attests to us the truth, assure to us
also its uses and its eflicacy? Take the promise,
"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt
be saved." Here are three particulars. The first is
faith: '■'■Believe." The second is the object of faith:
" O71 the Lord Jesus Christ." The third is the efficacy
of faith: "vlwc? thou shalt he saved." Must not faith
in this promise embrace each of these particulars?
If it leave out the second, "Jesus Christ," can it be
a hearty faith? No more can it be hearty if it
leave out the third particular, "Thou shalt be saved."
To doubt the efficacy of the promise as much dishon-

24 GERMAN MISSIONAEIES.

ors God, as to doubt its wliole triitJi, seeing bota are
vouched for by the very same authority.

But cordially to believe each particular of this
promise is so to believe it as to secure or to exj^eri-
e7ice its efficacy — because the only authorized method
to obtain the virtue of it is to "believe it with the
heart." Observe, however, we say cordially, or
"with the heart;" as this qualification is the safe-
guard of the doctrine. For faith which thus involves
the affections is divinely wrought — is " of the opera-
tion of God."

It follows, then, in regard to thus believing with
the heart that it is a state of salvation — not of fin-
ished salvation, but of " righfcous77ess" which prepares
for, and is an element of it. This is no more than
to say that faith in this promise is such a state as
God has pledged shall be the adjunct of faith. And
here we are brought to

II. The ScriiJtuj^al relation of faith and righteous-
ness.

Righteousness, in the text, has its evangelical
import, and means that freedom from guilt which
follows pardon, and that moral purity which flows
from " sanctification of the Spirit." Faith in Christ
is the condition on which these are received. The
text declares, "With the heart man believes unto
[both these branches of] righteousness." Not that
faith justifies by its intrinsic merit, or sanctifies by
its inherent power. The words are, "Believeth u7ito
righteousness." The merit is in Christ. The right-
eousness is not i7i, but throngh faith, which derives
to the soul a gracious dispensation of God's pardon-
ing .and purifying love. But as fiiith, and faith alone.

PRELIMINAET DISCOURSE. 25

can reach this righteousness, it is known m Scripture
as " the risfhteousness of faith."

As to pardon, the Bible teaches us, " Bj Him all
that believe are justified from all things, from which
they could not be justified by the law of Moses."
"But to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him
that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for
righteousness." " Therefore we conclude that a man
is justified by faith without' the deeds of the law."
In regard to purity the apostle says, " And put no
difi'erence between us and them, purifying their hearts
hy faiths "That they may receive forgiveness of
sins, and inheritance among all them that are sancti-
fied through faith that is in me." These, with many
other texts, clearly show that both pardon and
sanctification are received through faith. We may
add, each blessing is enjoyed whenever the promises
which specifically pledge the one or the other are
believed tvith the heart.

It should be stated that the words, " man believeth
unto righteousness," have not only an inclusive, but
an exclusive force. Besides proclaiming the efiicacy
of faith, they enforce the inefiicacy of all other things,
except as other things involve or infer faith. This is
plain from the connection. The preceding verses
array the righteousness of the law, as to its saving
efiicacy, against the righteousness of faith, and
condemn the Jews for going about to establish the
former, called " their own righteousness," instead of
submitting themselves to the latter, called "the right-
eousness of God." In this connection the text
clearly and forcibly denies that righteousness can be
attained by any means but faith. God chooses none

26 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

to salvation but " through sanctification of the Spirit^
and belief of the truth."

None, then, can devise a substitute for faith, which
has not a concurrent but an exclusive jurisdiction, so
to speak, over the grace which saves. All merit is in
Christ. All ways of seizing it are one ; namely, faith.
We can acquire no merit by any amount of effort or
penance on our part. The holiest saints that live, or
ever lived, are so far behind all works of deserving,
that they have no plea for seZf-security, to say nothing
of those rich supererogations Avhich are cheaply set
over to the credit of the needy, " whose recanted
heresies do not yield to the ordinary remedies. All
are needy, and all are guilty. "All have sinned,"
says the apostle, " and come short of the glory of
God." All, then, must fly to the cross. Looking to
be saved in other ways is to reproach that very cross ;
for "if righteousness come by the law, then is Christ
dead in vain."

As to our guilt, so far from being removed, not a
grain's weight can it be lightened by the sorest grief
for sin; by reformations the most exact; by self-
denials the most rigid; by penances the most abject,
painful, and protracted. Should we commence all
these in early childhood, and pursue them unremit-
tingly till death, so far from saving, without faith they
would involve us in growing guilt and ruin ; and the
law which we "thought to be unto life," we should
find "to be unto death." All such struggles after
life by the law would proclaim our disparaging views
of the Gospel ; for, like Judaism, it would be going
about to establish our own righteousness instead of
submitting to the righteousness of God. From these

PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE. 27

self-righteous deeds and self-denials, we must turn to
naked trust in Christ ; or the Gospel, so full of mercy,
Avill denounce in thunder-tones, "By the deeds of
the law shall no flesh be justified." "He that
believeth not, shall be damned."

To this wholesome doctrine there is nothing to
object. Other things than faith may seem to be made
conditions of salvation; but they are all so related
to faith, as to make the latter really the condition.
Sometimes salvation seems to hinge on repentance;
as, "Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish;"
but repentance is connected with faith as its fore-
runner. So of prayer : the context says, " Whoso-
ever shall call on the name of the Lord, shall be
saved ; but," it is added, " how shall they call on him,
in whom they have not believed?" showing that
prayer involves faith. James would seem to teach
that we are saved by works ; but he only means that
faith, without works, is simple belief, and not belief
" with the heart." His doctrine is, that, unless our
deeds indicate our faith, our faith is defective, and
can not save our souls. And here we pass to another
branch of the subject ; namely,

III. Confession, which is also named in the text as
a condition of salvation ; but which, as we shall see
when it comes in place, has this efiicacy simply as
the cherisher and exemplifier of faith. Let us now
glance at the nature, the matter, and the mode of
confession.

1. Its nature is not determined by the meaning
of the word; which denotes assent to imputations on
our conduct, or the voluntary exposure of our evil
thoughts or deeds. This is a frequent meaning of it

28 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

in the Bible. The Israelites thus confessed, under
the reproofs of faithful prophets; and thus "\ve are
told to " confess our faults 'P ie to another."

The confession named "» the text is not of crime
but rather of religious grace and virtue ; namely^
faith in Christ. Yet it is confession; for it is, by
some, denounced as crime. Moreover, ancient forms
of martyrdom often challenged recantation with the
promise of escape ; and to avow faith in Christ, under
such appalling circumstances, might well be called
"confession." But this avowal was confession,
whether with or without challenge ; and so it is to this
day. If without, it is sometimes called ^jro/e-ss/ow;
and this has Scripture warrant. Thomas confessed,
when he cried, " My Lord and my God !" as well as
Stephen, who testified before enraged foes. And if
the attending trials make it a "confession," there are
crosses besides martyrdom. Derision and reproach
can wound as well as wild beasts; and when the
former assail us at the sacred fireside, they may well
claim for us the honors of confession.

But, if challenge were necessary, we have it from
God himself, who commands us to " be ready always
to give an answer to every man that asketh a reason
of the hope that is in us, with meekness and fear."
If not the foes, the friends of Christ will Avant the
reason of our hope ; and shall we not be as ready to
meet the requirements of Christian love, as the mar-
tyrs were to endure the demands of stern and wrath-
ful persecution ?

2. As to the matter of confession, the context seems
to limit it to Christ's resurrection : " If thou con-
fess — and believe in thine heart that Qod hath raised

I>RELIMI]SrART DISCOURSE. 29

him from the dead.^' To understand this, Ave must
regard the sini'it of it. Certain acts, in given cir-
cumstances, prove sincere piety, "when, in different
circumstances, they would prove nothing at all. Look
at Daniel. Kneeling for prayer by his window, dis-
played, in the circumstances, heroic zeal for God ; but
take away the king's decree and den of lions, and
suppose his prayers offered up in the city of Jerusa-
lem, where the most profane Jew observed the custom,
and this act of Daniel loses all its force. Another
example is the conduct of the three " Hebrew Wor-
thies." Not to worship idols on Mount Zion was com-
mon to all classes, whether pious or profane. But, in
Babylon, where nations bowed down in submission to
royal edicts enforced by the terrors of a burning fiery
furnace, for three captive strangers to resist, and hurl
defiance at the monarch in the name of Israel's God,
was periling every earthly interest, and afforded the
strongest proof of sanctity and zeal.

In the light of these examples how evident it is,
that confessing one offensive feature of Christianity
may involve a full confession of the system. What
that feature is must be determined by the state of
public sentiment. In one age or region it may de-
pend on " caste ; " in another, on the practice of
polygamy ; and in a third, on false histories or " tra-
ditions," which cherish national vanity or profane
superstitions, and are in conflict with the doctrines
or chronologies of Scripture.

In Paul's day the resurrection was peculiarly offen-
sive, and concentered on itself the sum total of the
odium which fell upon Christianity. Christ was slain
as a deceiver. Except by his disciples he was ab-

30 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

horred above mankind. Ilis resurrection ■would not
only draw after it his Godhead, but would infer upon
his crucifiers unexampled guilt. It was therefore the
question of the times — the point of desperate conflict
between Christ's friends and foes. When persecution
raged, it was directed to that point, and met by the
specific testimony of the unresisting martyrs — a testi-
mony cheerfully sealed in their own blood. Surely
this was a plenary confession, involving faith in
Christ's Godhead, atonement, and offices — in the in-
ward work of the Spirit — in every doctrine of his
word, and in his promises, even to that " exceeding
precious" one, "i/e that loseth his life for omj sake
shall find it."

Thus the brief form of confession in the context
was made all-comprehensive by those existing circum-
stances which, whenever they return, will stamp that
form with its original force and meaning. But to
confess Christ's resurrection in the midst of present
Christendom, would scarcely pledge a man to decent
orthodoxy, and might leave him suspected of the
grossest infidelity. Of course true confession must
be made more explicit. When popular sentiment
moves men not to deny but acknowledge Christ, as
the true God and risen Savior, if the disciple would
bear the cross of true confession, he must go some
steps beyond that unoff'ensive summary, to those fea-
tures Avhich now come under the ban of public prej-
udice. Maintaining these with the firmness of a
martyr, he will show that he is not ashamed of Christ
or of his word; for Religion has still unwelcome fea-
tures, and always will have to unsanctified minds.
Moreover, she will be subject to that milder persecu-

PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE. 31

tion which, when it does not bind and burn, will turn
its victim over to contempt and ridicule.

An ingenious writer hints that religious persecution
has passed through several stages, answering to the
progress of divine revelation. Its first aim was God
the Father, in that divine unity which stood opposed
to idolatry and polytheism, and in defense of which
so many prophets gave their lives. Next it assailed
God the Son ; first in his own sacred person, and then
in that great " cloud of witnesses " who " loved not
their lives unto the death." Now it w^ars against
God the Holy Ghost, by deriding his gracious work
upon the souls of men.

Is there no ground for these distinctions? What
doctrinal test can now separate the true Christian
from an orthodox, guilty world ? The unity of God
was a badge to the Jew, but none to Christ's disciple,
for all Jewry held it ; and to Christ's very crucifiers
it might have been said, " Ye believe there is one
God — the devils also believe." The resurrection was,
in turn, a badge to the apostles, but it can be none to
us ; for now to the worst blasphemer it may be said,
" Thou believest Christ is risen — devils also believe."
These ancient tests are obsolete in Christendom, un-
less sometimes arrayed against a haggard infidelity
which lingers here and there in low and vulgar haunts.

What then is now required ? Confessions of Christ
m the work of the Holy Spirit — that Comforter which
he sent to " take of the things of Christ, and show
them unto us" — confessions from living witnesses
that the Spirit reproves, regenerates, and " sanctifies
wholly," through faith in Jesus Christ. The Jews
testified of God's works in their day j the apostles, of

82 GEEMAN MISSIONARIES.

his miraculous deeds in the commencement of Chris-
tianity ; and what belongs to us ? We can recount
no plagues like those which smote Egypt, nor deliver-
ing miracles like those of the exodus. Yet God has
not withdrawn his presence from our world. He
" works a work " in our day. " It shall come to pass
in the last days, saith God, that I will pour out of
my Spirit upon all flesh." This he now does, as we
have seen and known, convincing and regenerating —
"sprinkling clean water upon" us that we may "be
clean." And of the plagues of sin within us, worse
than the plagues of Egypt — of the rod, not of Aaron,
but of Christ smiting our rocky hearts and causing
the waters of repentance and then of joy to gush
forth — we too are witnesses.

Outward miracles in our day almost cease to be
disputed. Other matters are now drawn into the
issues which separate and antagonize the Church and
the world. Christ's Messiahship is yielded ; but the
Spirit's gracious work is denied and derided. Not
the advent, but its aim, provokes man's enmity ; and
this has become the issue which must next be settled,
not merely with the world, but with formal Christi-
anity. This in turn is the question — the point at
which Persecution aims, with such annoying subtilties
as her malice may employ when she dares not use
force; and, as faithful Avitnesses, we must shape our
testimony to her present modes of assault. Of what
avail is testimony which does not touch existing
issues?

3. The text prescribes the mode of confession ; and
the mistakes committed on this point show how im-

PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE. 33

portant it is that the question should be settled by
divine authority.

(1.) Some say, " My position in the Church testi-
fies." Not so. For to this day "they are not all
Israel who are of Israel." The visible Church is not
mainly composed of Christians. Itrmay be that nine-
teen-twentieths of her members know nothino; of vital
religion ; and even her Protestant branches are fields
in which the tares and wheat " grow together until the
harvest." Membership in such a Church will not be
received as an explicit avowal of saving faith in Christ.
A Church is condemned as heartless and Christless
for general silence on the subject of experimental
religion ; and if an unwitnessing Church fall under
such reproach, an unwitnessing member of it can
surely fare no better. And what if Church member-
ship were a profession of Christian "hope?" are we
not commanded to "give a reason of that hope?"

(2.) Others say, "Let your life testify." Testify
what? If well ordered, it may testify the purity of
your morals, and the innocency of your social dispo-
sitions. It may prove you honest, industrious, and
neighborly ; but all these you may be without regen-
eration or the love of God. How shall it be known
why you are honest — whether grace or nature, the
love of Christ or the love of praise, makes you so?
Your life testify ! Absurd ! As well might the blame-
less conduct of a witness at the bar be ofi'ered in reply
to fifty cross questions.

(3.) The mode is fixed by God's authority. " With
the mouth confession is made unto salvation ;" that is,
in words spoken or written — for in diff'ercnt circum-
stances they are equal. This has been the usual mode

34 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

from the beginning. When Noah built the ark, he
mingled his testimony with his daily toil, warning a
wicked generation of its impending doom. Those
"holy men of old," the patriarchs and prophets,
^^ spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost;"
some of them enjoying his infallible guidance. The
Psalmist wished to " declare " what God had done for
his soul. He prays, " Lord, open thou my lips, and
my mouth shall show forth thy praise." In harmony
with the text, which connects faith and confession, he
says, "I believed, and therefore have I spoken." The
New Testament saints followed this example; for the
apostle says, " We also believe, and therefore speakJ'
Stephen testified with his expiring breath, and Paul
records his experience in its remarkable details — vis-
ions, power, and all — not leaving out his call to preach,
nor even his visit to the third heavens. It seems he
was wont to relate all in his sermons, and that before
kings ; not standing on his own apostolic dignity, nor
anxious about the violations of courtly etiquette.

We ought to join the Church; else we reject God's
sacraments, and choose the world before God's people.
Like persons brought into court, we are summoned
into the Church to be qualified as witnesses by sacra-
mental oaths. In the Church we should behave with
the utmost circumspection, so that, our veracity un-
questioned, we may testify with the utmost effect.
But all this does not fulfill the demand of the sum-
mons. Having the position and the qualifications of
a witness, we must next give our testimony, and not
stand in the Church like "mutes" before the court.

IV. It remains to notice the relations or depend-
encies of confession. The text ascribes salvation to it.

1475226 ^

PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE. 35

But the Scriptures teach, as we have seen, that faith
is the only real or efficacious condition of being saved,
as Christ's merit through the Spirit is the only effica-
cious cause. Let us consider then more carefully the
shapings of the text.

" With the heart man believeth unto righteousness,
and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation,"
may seem to institute a sort of double proportion;
namely, ^^ as faith is to 7'ighteousness, so is confession
to salvation." But we must be guarded in our under-
standing of "so is," not receiving it in its precise
technical force, or we shall do violence to Scripture.
Its force is to define the certainty of results, but not
the principle which works those results.

It may be difficult to illustrate this distinction,
which, metaphysical as it may be in aspect, is vital
both in theology and in experience, as every thing is
which affects our views of faith. If a man should say
to his neighbor, " The fountain by yonder hill supplies
water to the vale, and these minute streams revive
the withered herbage," two relations — connecting the
fountain with the vale, and the streams with the herb-
age — would be expressed; but two other relations —
connecting the fountain with the streams, and the
fountain with the herbage — would be implied: and
these last, being familiar to our experience, would im-
press us as forcibly as though they were expressed.
So in the text, the relations of faith to righteousness,
and of confession to salvation, are expressed ; but the
relation of faith to confession and to salvation is not
expressed. Faith, as a condition, bears the same rela-
tion to these which the fountain bears to the streams
and the refreshed herbage : it gathers into the soul.

36 GERMAN MISSIONAEIES.

from Christ the hidden source, the life- waters of sal-
vation; but confession, as an outward act of faith,
renders these life-waters refreshing and beneficent.

In the light of this illustration we may perceive in
how difi"erent a sense confession and faith are condi-
tions of salvation. Faith is the real or efficacious
condition ; yet, as confession must interpose, like the
streams, to attain the end of faith, it is ordinarily as
indispensable as faith itself. Even the thief upon the
cross not only believed but confessed, suddenly as he
was hurried into the presence of his Judge.

But what service does confession render which
makes it indispensable? It cherishes and exemplifies
our Christian graces. First, it cherishes them, as
light and air do the plants which must perish without
their influence. For example :

1. Confession promotes humility. Tracing our par-
don and purification to Christ is conceding our own
guilt, pollution, and helplessness. To claim Christ as
a Savior, is to proclaim self a sinner. This is a cross
against which pride rallies, and which, borne, lays
pride in the dust. Confession glories in the cross,
which is glorying in self-abasement, yea, in self-cruci-
fixion, as Paul did when the Pharisee was dead in '
him : " God forbid that I should glory save in the
cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom I am cruci-
fied to the world." What he once thought of that in
which his humility now gloried, is familiar to us all.
When Peter stood in the judgment-hall and warmed
himself, confession would not only have humbled, but
would have saved him.

2. Confession aids self-eonsecration, by dissolving
our connection with the world, and breaking up our

PEELIMINAKY DISCOURSE. 37

union with the creatures. It says, not of the friends,
but of the enemies of religion, "Let us break their
bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us."
It yields a public pledge to Christ and his Church,
and fortifies religious purpose by compelling its worst
foes, such as earthly policy and the sense of shame,
to become its aids and allies. If the Christian would
multiply the cords which bind his sacrifice to the altar,
let him often proclaim his purpose to keep it there.
God will employ our confessions to lead us out of the
world into his closer fellowship. What we feebly
bind on earth he will be pleased to bind in heaven,
writing on our hearts, "Zw^'S receive you.'"'

3. Confession strengthens faith itself. Like filial
piety, it nourishes its parent. It is to faith like those
braces which the juices of the stalk throw out for
self-support. Its influence may partly depend on the
laws of mind ; for such is our mental constitution that
avowal fortifies and almost creates conviction. In
this way skepticism has been wrought into atheism ;
for men have become confirmed in infidelity by lightly
vindicating it in conversation. And if against evi-
dence a man can talk himself into the belief of fatal
?rror, how much more may he deepen the impressions
of truth, when he has reason and conscience on his
side to enforce his own avowals ? Doubtless, on natu-
ral principles, confession strengthens faith.

And so it does evangelically or by the Holy Spirit,
under whose gracious culture the renovated heart is
like a vine which becomes more fruitful for its pluck-
ings. God will work faith in them who use it for his
glory, by standing up in its strength as his unflinch-
ing witnesses: "Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me;

38 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

and to liim that orderetli liis conversation aright -VYill
I show the salvation of God."

Second, confession is the representative of faith.
It is true that good works execute the same office :
" Show me thy faith without thy works, and I will
show thee my faith by my works." Thus the apostle.
But important as works are to confirm our testimony,
they fail in some respects to represent our Christian
graces. They are sometimes unseasonable. Confes-
sion is quick, works are slow. That requires a mo-
ment ; these consume months or years. The thief |
upon the cross had time merely to confess, whicli, in
his circumstances, was "the cup of cold water;" for
though his faith could only cast one look at Christ, its
confiding exclamation so kindled the Savior's pity
that it blazed into trains of light and guided him to
paradise.

Works can only give a bird's-eye view of faith.
They can not report the minute changes of experi-
ence — the trials and assaults, the conflicts, wounds,
and triumphs, of the Christian warfare. But confes-
sion can map out every turn in the pilgrim's course to
Canaan ; and, for warning and encouragement to
those Avho follow after, can describe each help and
hindcrance he meets with in the way. If works lay
down the heads of our experience, confession fills up
the skeleton.

And we must not forget that confession is itself
one of the most important Avorks of faith. It is the
genesis of them all, and its omission betrays a want
of earnestness in religion, a state of heart unfruitful
of all good works. He whose zeal does not confess,
will limp and lag in other duties. The power which

PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE. 39

can not turn her wheels will never move the steamer.
As a general rule, the grace which has force enough
to act, will move its subject to proclaim God's saving
mercies. " I have believed, and therefore have 1
spoken," was the experience of early times. And so
tinder the Gospel : " We also believe, and therefore
epeak." Here the word "therefore" involves a vital
principle; namelj, faith speaks. Its very instinct is
to vent itself in words. Its birth is usually not in
silence, but with the voice of groans ; and when the
work is finished, and Sabbath calms and raptures now
first betide the soul, no wonder if over the new crea-
tion there is a " shouting aloud for joy." May not
the dying penitent, new-born of the Spirit, be roused
by that Avhich moves the sons of God in paradise ?
" There is joy in heaven over one sinner that re^
penteth."

There is a still-born faith, which should be always
silent, for it would be misrepresented by a show of
roused affections. What has no inward ardors de-
mands no outward signs. There is a way of thinJcing
which men call faith. As it touches not the heart,
both heart and lip are still. It m.oves, like Surgery
through a hospital, around the Savior's cross, but
with a colder speculation regards the suffering Victim.

The faith which speaks is different. To its renewed
affections the cross is a home-tragedy, where science
is a mockery, but the yielding heart dissolves amid
the groans and death-throes of the atoning Son of
God. He who has this faith, believing " with the
heart," may sometimes find himself in untoward
moods for silence. His musings may kindle fires not
easily controlled, which, bursting the barriers of his

40 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

own false discretion, will remind him of that saying,
" If these should hold their peace, the very stones
would cry out." The glorious things revealed, the
ardors of his divinely-wrought conviction, and the
new creations " unto righteousness," which take his
being captive, may render silence inconvenient. Thus
it seemed to be with David, in the sixty-sixth Psalm.
While his song premeditated joyful offerings in the
tabernacle, he felt such sudden overflows of rapture
as could not brook the delays and moderations of his
plan ; and he seemed disposed to hurry up a love-
feast in the palace : " Come and hear, all ye that fear
God, and I will declare what he hath done for my
soul."

How vital, then, is the connection between confes-
sion and salvation ! Without faith we can not be
saved. And confession, as we have seen, must cher-
ish and prove our faith. And, above all, if our faith
be of the heart as well as of the intellect, it will
speak, even as the breath comes and goes by the ur-
gencies of nature. Then let us beware of silence.
If it has already grieved the Holy Spirit, till con-
fession is no longer easy and spontaneous as it wa,s at
our conversion, let us proceed to enact, as a duty,
that which should have been a privilege, and thus re-
cover what is lost. If it is still a privilege, let us not
" sell our birthright." Let us be faithful witnesses,
and keep back nothing. The text is broad, and
covers all experience — not select portions of it which
involve no cross, because they invite no reproach.
Our confession must be of God's grace, whatever it
hath wrought in its regenerating, comforting, and
sanctifying forms; or, unlike the Psalmist, we hide

PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE. 41

God's "righteousness within our hearts," and "with-
hold his loving-kindness and his truth from the great
congregation." We do not " talk of all his wondrous
works."

It is true that circumstances should be regarded
in performing this great duty. To confess perfect
love in a large and mixed assembly would be unsea-
sonable ; but to do it in a love-feast would be highly
proper; for there, unless the Discipline has been
grossly violated, it will not be " casting pearls before
swine." Rising in such a place to relate God's deal-
ings with us, we should feel that we are as witnesses
sworn " to tell the truth, the ivJiole truth, and nothing
but the truth;" or to "declare ivliat he hath done for
our souls." This will edify both ourselves and those
who hear. The Psalmist not only looked for self-re-
lief, but expected to minister comfort to others. " My
soul shall make her boast in the Lord; the humble
shall hear thereof and he glad.''' "From you," says
the apostle, "sounded out the word of the Lord;
and in every place your faith to God-ward is spread
abroad, so that we need 7iot to speak any thing.''
This at least borders on declaring that even the ne-
cessity of apostolic ministrations was waived by the
confessions of the Thessalonian converts. Nor is it
strange ; for what argument can have the force of
simple testimony?

We may say, then, confession "is twice blessed;"
is blessed in him that speaks and him that hears. It
is a "stream that maketh glad" on every side. Not
only does its outflow refresh the house of God, but
with a reflex force it returns on the confessor, and
sets all inward grace in motion, which occasion the

42 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

Holy Spirit seizes to enlarge and fill the channels of
his inward life, and sweetly multiply the volume of
his graces. May God so enrich us with his abound-
ing grace that, as Paul prayed for Philemon, ^Hlie
communication of our faith may become effectual by
the acknowledging of every good thing ivhich is in us
in Christ Jesus!"

I

A D A M M 1 L L E li . 43

CHAPTER I.

ADAM MILLER— AWAKENING AND CONVERSION.

In giving an account of the experience of some
of our German missionaries, it will perhaps be ex-
pected that I should say a few things in reference to
myself, and more especially as I was identified with
the German missionary work for a number of years.
I witnessed its commencement and gradual growth
and development from the first efforts of one solitary
missionary till the present time, when the work has
extended all over the United States, and is even now
spreading over the father-land. In connection with f^
my experience, and the experience of our German
preachers, I shall make such notes and explanatory
remarks as will give the reader an outline of the rise
and progress of the work among the Germans.

I was born in the state of Maryland, in the year
1810, and when I was four months old my father
moved to the then western wilds of Ohio, Avith a col-
ony of the stricter sect of the Mennonites, called the
Ornish. As these singular people, in every place
where they make settlements, seek to be secluded from
intercourse with the society of other people, their aim
was to purchase as much of the land as possible in one
vicinity, and thus keep together in a kind of com-
munity ; consequently, the new colony soon increased
by emigration from Pennsylvania and Maryland, and

44 GEE MAN MISSIONARIES.

almost the entire neighborhood was made up of these
Ornish, or Monnonites, as they are sometimes called.
My parents were members of the society, and strict
observers of their many singular rules and customs.
My grandfather and two of my uncles were preachers
in their Church, and I was early taken to their meet-
ings, and from a child brought up to a strict observ-
ance of the rules of the society, which consisted in
some peculiar modes of dress and a strict morality,
so far as the outward conduct is concerned. Our
people were not allowed to go to any religious meet-
ings except our own, and no other preachers were
allowed to preach among us. We lived on the out-
skirts of the settlement, and my father on several
occasions went to hear ministers of other denomina-
tions preach, for which he was severely censured. He
owned a mill, and by mingling with the English
neighbors on one side of our place he had become
familiar with the English language; but our language
in the family, however, was the Pennsylvania Ger-
man. On one occasion, Avhen I was some fifteen
years old, he went to a Methodist quarterly meeting,
and came home in the evening very serious, and told
us he had heard a sermon on the judgment-day by
an Irish preacher by the name of Charles Elliott.*
He read to us the text and repeated a number of
remarks which he had recollected from the sermon.
My mind was early and deeply impressed with the
importance of a preparation for a future state. I
often Avandered in solitary places anxiously wishing

••■Our venerable friend, Dr. Elliott, was then presiding elder in the
bounds of the Pittsburg district.

ADAM MILLEE. 4b

to know what to do to be saved; for our preachers
talked about a future state, but left us in the dark on
the subject of vital godliness. The doctrines of
awakening, repentance, conversion, and the witness
of the Spirit were not taught to us. A strict moral-
ity and a punctilious adherence to rules of the
Church, modes of dress, etc., were considered a suffi-
cient passport to heaven.

When I was between sixteen and seventeen years
of age my father again went on a Sabbath day to a
Methodist meeting. The preacher on the occasion
was Rev. Joseph M'Dowell, then a local preacher,
now presiding elder of Mount Pleasant district, Iowa
conference. On his way from meeting he traveled
several miles with the preacher, and in conversation
with him found that he was teaching school in a
neighboring village. On his return home he told
me — as I was then lame from a dislocated ankle-joint
and not able to work on the farm — that he would
send me to the Methodist preacher to school to learn
the English language thoroughly. I was much de-
lighted with the proposition, and awaited with great
anxiety the day for my departure from home to go
to school. When I made my appearance at the
school-house, with my singular Mennonite costume, I
attracted the especial attention of the teacher and the
scholars. Established in the religious principles of
our order, I was not afraid of being misled, and
had not the most distant idea of becoming a Method-
ist. I soon became much attached to my teacher;
and, as I made rapid progress in my English educa-
tion, out of courtesy I went to hear him preach. I
became very singularly affected under the preaching,

46 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

and often wept profusely when I did not understand
more than half of what was said.

My teacher now began to instruct me in private ;
and, during noon spells and recess, explained to my
dark mind the nature of true religion. I soon con-
cluded that if he was right we had all been wrong,
and if there was a religion which afibrded peace to
a troubled mind I would have it. Soon after my
awakening to a sense of my lost condition, my teacher
told me that there was a quarterly meeting not far
off, and invited me to go with him, which I cheerfully
did. "Now," said he, "when we get to the meeting
on Saturday night, they will have a bench out in front
of the pulpit, to which they will invite all seekers of
religion," and advised me to go forward. I at once
agreed; and, as soon as the Saturday night sermon
was over, the bench was put out in front of the pul-
pit, and no sooner had the invitation been given than
I started and kneeled down, all alone at first — my
heart all broken up, willing to do any thing to obtain
tliis religion that my kind teacher had talked so much
to me about — but now my troubles thickened around
me. I had never been at such a meeting ; in the mo-
ment of excitement I had forgotten many things that
had been told me, and what to say I did not knoAv;
but, in an instant, it occurred to me I would listen
with attention, and what I heard others say that I
would say ; and, of course, would be right. Just as
I had formed this purpose, a pious sister commenced
clapping her hands, and shouting "glory to God," at
the top of her voice, and with that I commenced, in
broken accents of half German and half English, to
cry glory to God; and, to follow up the whole, com-

I

ADAM MILLER. 47

menced clapping my hands. My teacher soon came
to me, and asked me whether I had found peace. To
which I replied, "No; I feel very bad; I am a lost
sinner," and continued to repeat the words I had
caught from the pious sister.

He said to me, " You must not say glory, but say
'Lord, have mercy on me a sinner !' " I soon did ac-
cording to his instruction; but, at the same time,
commenced to claim religion on the ground of my
past moral life. Instead of trusting in the Savior, I
trusted in my own good works. My grief and distress
of mind became almost indescribable. I have often
since thought I might have exclaimed with propriety :

"A darker soul did never yet
Thy promised help implore."

I have mentioned my embarrassment, and my mis-
take in my first efforts to pray in an hour of great
excitement and mental agitation, to show that great
allowance should be made, and a great deal of patience
and forbearance should be exercised toward those who
had never received proper religious instruction in
earlier days. What may appear perfectly plain to a
person who has frequently visited such meetings, will
not appear so to one who is just emerging from dark-
ness and superstition, deeply sensible of his lost con-
dition, anxiously inquiring the way to life. Such was
my case ; I knew that I was in the wrong way, and
anxiously sought the right way. I looked on the right
hand and on the left for help, and was willing to do
all in my power to be delivered from my sins.

After the quarterly meeting I returned to the
school, but could not study, my distress of mind being

48 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

SO great. My father heard of it, but such were the
impressions that had been made upon his mind, by the
few Methodist sermons which he had heard, that he
would not oppose me. My relations generally be-
came bitterly opposed to me. I went to brother
M'Dowell and asked whether the Methodists would
receive me into their Church. He told me they would
take me on trial, for which I was very thankful ; and,
at the first offer, I gave my hand and my name to the
Church.

I had now torn myself loose from the community
in which I had been brought up. The family where I
boarded were irreligious and opposed me. My teacher
took me into his own house, instructed and directed
me in the way to life; and, after three months of
struggling against unbelief and the powers of dark-
ness, the Lord granted me peace and pardon, the wit-
ness of the Spirit, and the joys of his salvation.

I soon commenced to talk to others about religion.
My progress in learning English was very rapid. The
preachers and others of our Church wished my father
to interpose his parental authority to bring me back.
This he refused to do, from fear that he might do
wrong; but, at the same time, concluded not to help
nor encourage me. My grandfather soon after my con-
version was taken sick; and, on his death-bed, called
me to talk to me and entreat me to return to the
community I had left. The Lord gave me great lib-
erty and power to talk to him, and to explain to him
the nature of repentance and conversion. He wept
profusely, and seemed anxious to hear me talk about
this new way. He said to me he had never fully given
me up for lost, to which I replied, "No, I am not

ADAM MILLER. 49

lost, but saved through God's mercy." I finally asked
the privilege of praying with him, to which he readily
consented. The power of the Lord came down, and
I believe the venerable old man, of eighty years,
looked to Jesus and found peace in believing. Many
of the members of his own Church stood around and
looked with astonishment on the scene. I was
strengthened in the faith. The old man was com-
forted, and when I left the room his aged wife fol-
lowed me into the yard, and wished me to make to
her some further explanation about this religion, which
I cheerfully did. She was much aifected, and I went
on my way rejoicing. I could now bear the persecu-
tions to which I Avas subject, with a glad heart. The
Methodist Church was my home ; the members of the
Church all treated me kindly; Christ was my Savior,
and heaven my aim :

"Jesus, all the day long,
Was my joy and my song."

In some six months after my conversion the so-
ciety voted me license to exhort. This I soon com-
menced to do in broken and poor English, but my
lameness, which still continued, prevented my going
far from home. I had a constant and almost inexpres-
sible desire to do something for the cause of Christ;
but my limited education, and other apparently insur-
mountable difficulties, did not allow me to entertain
the thought of becoming a minister of the Gospel.
Yet I formed this purpose — to use all the means within
my reach for the improvement of my mind : my want
of earlier opportunities was my misfortune ; my neg-
lect to improve the future would be my fault.

50 GERMAN MISSIONAEIES.

In the following summer there was a camp meeting
held near Canton, Ohio, twenty-five miles from my
father's residence, to which I had a great desire to
go, but knew of no mode of conveyance, and such
was my lameness that I could scarcely walk two or
three miles without great difficulty. My father con-
sented that I should go, but would not allow me a
horse to ride. I however resolved to go. My sister
baked me a few biscuits, and with six cents in my
pocket I started on a journey of twenty-five miles,
though scarcely able to walk three ; yet I had strong
confidence that some way would be provided for me
to get there. When half a mile from home I was
overtaken by a man in an empty Avagon, driving along
at a rapid rate. When he came up with me he
suddenly halted and asked where I was going; I told
him I had started for camp meeting, near Canton.
" Get into my Avagon," said he ; " I am going right by
there on my way to Cleveland, and you are welcome
to ride in my wagon ; I am not a Methodist," he
continued, "but nearly all my relations are, and I am
a friend to the Methodists." I gladly accepted the
offer, and was taken to camp meeting as comfortably
as if I had been able to hire my OAvn conveyance.
On the way an incident occurred that aflfected me
very much. Stopping at a house to get a drink of
water, the lady of the house asked me from what
place I had come. I replied, "From Shanesville."
" Do tell me," said she, " have you heard of the young
Mcnnonite or Omish boy who Avas converted at Shanes-
ville some time ago ? Hoav is he getting along V I
at once kncAV she Avas inquiring after my OAvn history
Avithout knowing to Avliom she was talking. I merely

I

ADAM MILLER. 51

gave her to understand that the young man was doing
well, and left the house rejoicing in the great things
which the Lord had done for me. At camp meeting
the brethrexi received me very kindly, and I was
without want during the meeting. I had now in a
good degree changed my manner of dress, and no
longer attracted so much attention as when I first
went to Methodist meetings. This camp meeting was
a glorious one, and a great blessing to my soul. At
the close of the meeting I had made no arrangement
to get home, and was not able to walk the distance,
and knew of no wagon from our neighborhood.
Standing alone in the street in Canton, a distance of
twenty-five miles before me, and six and a fourth
cents in my pocket as my only dependence, save the
good providence of God, I still hoped that some way
would be provided for my safe return. While med-
itating what to do, a stranger drove up behind me
and asked me where I was going. "To or near
Shanesville," was my reply. "Well," said he, "I am
going there with an empty carriage and two fleet
horses, and if you will give me six cents to buy
grease for my wheels I will take you there to-night."
The money was handed out — it was all I had, it was
all he wanted — and before night I was landed safe at
home. I thanked the Lord, for I believed his good
providence had directed the stranger to me.

By the consent of my father I commenced praying
in the family when I was at home ; but much of my
time for the first two years after my conversion
was spent with my friend and benefactor, brother
M'Dowell. During the summers I went to school,
and during the winters I taught school. 1 had waked

52 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

up to a new world of thought, as well as of feeling.
English grammar, natural philosophy, chemistry, phys-
iology, anatomy, and medicine, each, came in turn,
and I employed my leisure time in studying these and
other branches of science with great diligence. Much
as I was delighted with the progress I made in my
studies, my greatest care was to get some of my
relations to go with me in the way to life eternal.
With kind words I induced one of my sisters to go
with me to a quarterly meeting. When we arrived at
the meeting-house I told a good lady to invite her to
take a seat near to the pulpit, I really believed that
there was something peculiarly solemn in the place,
and that she would be more likely to receive good
impressions among the pious than in the wicked
crowd in the back part of the house. My wish was
gratified. My sister Avas seated near the pulpit, sur-
rounded by pious praying friends. Rev. William
Swayze, of precious memory, was our presiding elder.
When he commenced to preach, I commenced to pray
for my sister. I looked at the preacher and then at
her, and toward the close of the sermon I saw the
large tears gathering in her eyes, and soon coursing
down her cheeks. My fjiith increased as I prayed.
" Lord, give me one of my father's household to
go with me. Shall I be the only one of the family
that shall be delivered from the delusion in which we
have lived?" was the earnest language of my heart.
At the close of the sermon the preacher said, " All
you who wish an interest in the prayers of the Church
rise up." My sister was soon on her feet. That
night she came to the altar for prayers, and before
the meeting closed she was happily converted to God.

ADAM MILLER. 53

We tten joined together to pray for the rest of the
family, but for some time our prospects were dark and
dreary.

There was a camp meeting some seven miles off, and
our plan was to get our brother next younger than my-
self to go with us ; he promised to go, but on the day
when we started he refused. "We however went, pray-
ing for him ; and after we had been on the ground a
few days he came. We talked to him, but he would not
hear us, and remained on the outskirts among the care-
less crowd till Saturday night, when, walking from the
spring to the encampment, he suddenly fell to the
ground, and commenced crying at the top of his
voice, " Send for my brother and sister !" We were
soon on the spot, and he cried out when he saw us,
"Will you forgive me for treating you so badly?"
"Yes," said I, "it is all forgiven." "Well, will God
forgive me ?" continued he. My sister and I both as-
sured him that God would forgive him. We led him
to the altar of prayer, and, after a hard struggle and
continued prayer, about midnight he was powerfully
converted. There were now three of us, and we all
joined in prayer for the family. Our father with his
silver locks bowed at the altar of prayer and said to
us, " Children, come and pray for me too," In a
few years all were happily converted and members of
the Church. That brother and that sister have long
since gone to their rest in heaven, and both in their
dying hours gave clear evidence of the power of di-
vine grace to save. They died triumphantly happy.

I have mentioned these things to encourage those
who now have unconverted relatives to pray for them.
But I must pause and ask, where is that simple, con-

54 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

fiding faith vnih. which we went to a throne of grace
in those days, and looking up to God through Jesus
Christ, beheving that we should have the things
we asked for? If we have substituted speculative
theories on the subject of faith for this strong confi-
dence in the divine promises we have made a sad ex-
change. May the God of our fathers bring us back
to these old landmarks ! I may add here, that after
the conversion of our family gradual inroads were
made upon our community. Others followed our ex-
ample and left them, and sought a home in the Meth-
odist or some other evangelical Church. My father
was unfortunate in business, and was obliged to sell
his property to satisfy his creditors, and retired to a
rented farm.

In the year 1830 I finally left my father's house,
with nothing excepting my clothing — a small bundle
of which I carried in my hands. My friend, brother
M'Dowell, had in the mean time removed sixty miles
further west, and settled in Knox county, Ohio,
where he labored with great success as a local
preacher. It was my aim to live in his neighbor-
hood, learn some trade, and devote as much of my
time to study as I could.

Soon after my arrival in Knox county the brethren
brought my case before the society for license to
preach. When the matter was mentioned to the
preacher in charge, Rev. James M'Mahan, he met
me in front of the church, looked at me Avith his
keen, penetrating eye; and, I have no doubt, if he
had expressed his honest sentiments he would have
said, "An unpromising youth." He told me I had
better put off my application to some future time ; to

ADAM MILLER. 55

vrhlch I replied that I had not made it; and, as my
friends had made it "without my consent, I would not
take the responsibility to withdraw it. He went into
the church and made a set speech against me, and
took the vote ; but my case was passed by a large
majority. He made another speech, and took the
vote the second time, and the matter carried by the
same majority — of this I was informed afterward.
I certainly never blamed my esteemed friend M'Ma-
han. He had before him a poorly-clad, unpromising-
looking subject, and he did what he believed to be
right. In two weeks from this time I had to appear
before the quarterly conference. Brother M'Mahan
soon introduced me to Rev. L. Swormstedt, who was
then our presiding elder, with this remark, "He
wants to get license to preach, and perhaps he may
want to get into the traveling connection some day."
I was aware of a strong current of prejudice against
me. A stranger among the brethren at that place,
nothing was known of my previous history; and,
while many doubts and fears were expressed,
brother Swormstedt, with his peculiar frankness and
a disposition to give every one a fair trial, said,
"We will put him up to preach." When I was told
that I had to preach what would be considered a
trial sermon, I immediately retired to the grove and
laid the matter before the Lord in prayer. I felt
confident that if it was the Lord's will that I should
preach he would aid me by his grace. When I went
to the church brother Swormstedt took his seat in the
pulpit and brother M'Mahan in front of the altar.
The Lord helped me, and brother M'Mahan wept,
while brother Swormstedt gave a few hearty amens —

5() GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

just such as lie could give in those days. Many
through the congregation wept. A number ap-
proached the altar for the prayers of the Church, and
we had a season of refreshing from the presence of
the Lord. From that day to this brother M'Mahan
has been one of my best friends. I had indeed per-
haps too little care about my personal appearance.
What I had earned the two previous winters by teach-
ing school I gave to my father, because he needed it,
and reserved nothing for myself, but very ordinary
clothing.

In three months after I was licensed to preach I
was recommended to the annual conference, to be
received into the traveling connection. I told the
brethren that I could not go ; I had neither horse,
saddle, nor clothing to start out .with ; but still I was
willing to follow the openings of Providence, and go
if the way was opened before me. I was fully satis-
fied that, if it was the Lord's will that I should go, a
way would be opened for me, and that embarrass-
ments in my way would be removed.

Brother M'Dowell told me to purchase a horse, and
he would indorse for me. Brother R. sold me an old
saddle for four dollars, on twelve months' credit;
brother H. a pair of saddle-bags, on the same terms.
A neighbor woman took her husband's old plaid
cloak, ripped it up, and turned it inside out, and fixed
it up for me ; another good sister gave me a fcAV pairs
of socks. I had an old white hat, which, from long
use and exposure to rains, was nearly worn out.
Brother T. D. made me a pair of shoes, while I cut
off the skirts of an old frock coat to make me a pair
of wrappers or leggins. Friends were multiplied

ADAM MILLER. 67

around me, and I was supplied with every real
comfort.

By some good fortune I had fifty cents in money
in my pocket, and thus duly equipped I started for
conference at Mansfield, a distance of twenty-five
miles from my residence. Fortunately for me, in
those days, they did not allow candidates admission
into the conference, as they transacted their business
with closed doors ; for had I been admitted among
the brethren, I would have run a narrow chance of
being rejected on the ground of my poor outfit.

At the close of the conference my name was read
out for Nicholas circuit, Virginia, a distance of nearly
four hundred miles. The fifty cents I had I paid to
a man for pasturing my horse during conference.
And now came another trial. How to reach my field
of labor, four hundred miles off", without money to
defray my expenses, I did not know. My colleague,
also a young man, lived twenty miles from my place
of residence. I called on him, and found he had
barely money enough to take us both to our appoint-
ment. OS" we started, and, after a tedious journey
on horseback, we reached our field of labor, and the
day we arrived the last cent of money was spent. At
the first quarterly meeting we each received two dol-
lars quarterage. We had a prosperous year, with
thirty-one appointments to fill every four weeks, and
a distance of three hundred and fifty miles to travel.
The appointments were from fourteen to twenty -five
miles apart. My health, which had been poor for a
few years past, was very much improved on bear
meat, venison, corn bread, and an occasional mess of
pork and beans. Never was there a better hospital

58 GERMAN MISSIONARIES

for an invalid young preacher than one of those
mountain circuits ; and there are many of our young
men now, with broken-down constitutions, just from
our literary institutions, who would be gainers through
life if they could spend a year or two in those mount-
ainous regions, breathe a pure mountain air, and live
on the homely fare of the mountaineer.

At the close of this year the brethren came up
nobly, and paid each of us fifty-one dollars as our
salary for the year. With close economy I saved
thirty dollars to pay on my horse, and some other
small debts.

I remained four years in this rough Kanawha dis-
trict, and by this time had well-nigh forgotten my
German language. My debts were all paid, and I
was free to go wherever the providence of God would
open the way.

ADAM MILLER. 59

CHAPTER II.

STUDY OF THE GERMAN L ANG U AGE — MISSION
WORK.

While on Guyandotte circuit, in Virginia, I saw a
call, published in the Western Christian Advocate,
from Bishop Emorj, for a missionary, who could
speak the German and French languages, to go to the
south. I immediately remarked to a brother that I
■would again study the German language, and preach
to the Germans, who were then emigrating, by many
thousands annually, into this country. With this
resolution to study the German language, I com-
menced, but knew of no one who could aid me or
instruct me in the pure European German. About
this time I visited my father in northern Ohio ; pro-
cured a German New Testament, and some other Ger-
man books, with a view of carrying out my purpose.

During this trip, while passing through Zanesville,
Ohio, I heard of a young German man, by the name
of William Nast, who was represented to be a fine
scholar, and under a deep awakening anxiously seek-
ing for salvation. It occurred to me at once that if I
could find this man he might give me lessons in Ger-
man, and I might be of advantage to him by impart-
ing spiritual instruction and encouragement. I in-
quired for him at Zanesville, and found he had started
down the Muskingum river on a flat-boat. I followed

60 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

him down to the Ohio river, and learned that he
landed at Gallipolis, and, upon inquiry, found that
he had gone five miles into the country with a brother
Cubbage. On arriving at Cubbage's I learned that
he was at a brother Newton's. Here I found him, in
a small room, giving instruction to a few young chil-
dren. I introduced myself as a Methodist preacher,
and told him that I had come to take him with me to
my circuit in Western Virginia, to which he replied,
" I can not go with you ; I can no more be a member
of civil society. I have sinned away my day of grace,
and to go with you would only increase my condem-
nation." I, however, urged him to go with me, tell-
ing him there was yet hope for him. He continued
to beg off in the most piteous strains. I finally told
him I wanted to learn German, and wished him to
give me instruction.

This plea seemed to induce his consent to go ;
after several fruitless efforts I succeeded in borrowing
a horse for him in the neighborhood. After the horse
was procured and shod, he was strongly inclined to
stay, with a plea that he had never been accustomed
to riding on horseback; and, further, he pleaded that
it would only increase his condemnation to go among
Christian people. I urged him to go and hope for
mercy from the Lord.

On a cold day, in the month of Februai-y, 1834, we
started ; and on the evening of the first day's journey
we stopped at brother Campbell's, a local preacher,
who received us with much cordiality and kindness,
and immediately gave out an appointment for preach-
ing at his house the same evening. Brother Nast had
told me during the day that he thought he had been

ADAM MILLER. 61

called to preach, and for having resisted the call, and
thus grieving the Holy Spirit, he had brought this
great condemnation upon himself. As he then under-
stood the English language well, although he could
not speak it fluently, I proposed to him that he should
exhort after my sermon, which he consented to do.
At the close of the sermon I prepared the way for him,
by informing the congregation who he was, and where
I had found him; and, continued, wishing them to
pray that the Lord might deliver him from all his
troubles.

He arose and commenced in the following strain :
" I have lost my soul — I have sinned away my day of
grace ; there is no mercy for me, and I only arise to
warn you not to put off your return to God. Take
warning from me and do not quench the Holy Spirit."
In this strain he went on for some time. The people
listened with great attention, and I have no doubt,
while he was telling his sad tale, many an ardent
though silent prayer was offered to God that he might
yet deliver the young man from all his fears, and make
him an instrument of great good to his countrymen.
It was a general sentiment at that time, and often ex-
pressed, that the Lord would convert the young Ger-
man and some day make a great and useful missionary
of him.

After the congregation was dismissed we retired to
the room assigned us for the night. I was soon
soundly asleep, but about midnight was awakened by
a noise on the floor ; brother Nast had risen from his
bed, and lay on the floor in the cold winter night,
struggling, groaning, and praying for mercy. He
must have spent several hours on the floor during the

62 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

night ; and, in the morning, I said to him : " Did you
not tell us last night that you had no hope of heaven —
that you had lost all hope of ever obtaining mercy?"
"Yes," said he, "I did, and I say so still." "No,"
replied I, " you have not given up all hope. You still
believe, if you were to express the honest sentiments
of your heart, that there is mercy for you ; and, to
prove this to you, I will appeal to your own conduct.
If you had no hope for mercy why did you get up last
night, cold as it was, and lie for hours on the floor, if
you did not have some hope that the Lord would yet
hear and answer your prayer?" To this he answered:
"Well, a man must be very far gone if he get so far
that he Avill not pray any more." After breakfast
we started on our journey, and in a few days arrived
at Guyandotte, in Virginia.

Here I introduced him to the "first families" of
pious Methodists, all of Avhom took a deep interest in
his welfare, and many an ardent prayer was offered
for his conversion. During his stay with me he
translated our Articles of Religion and the General
Rules of our Discipline, and wrote in English char-
acters so that I could read it. When he came to the
translation of the sacramental services he hesitated
very much, saying that he was too great a sinner and
too unworthy to translate and write those solemn
words. At my earnest request, however, he pro-
ceeded and finished the translation.

After spending some time with me I left him in the
care of a pious family, by the name of Maupin, while
I went to a quarterly meeting. During my absence
he returned to Ohio, and afterward gave me the fol-
lowing account of his trip home : " I started on my

ADAM MILLER. 63

way back to Ohio, and soon came to a stream where
the water was very high, after a shower of rain. It
was at flood hight, and looked fearful. I thought this
would be a good opportunity to make an end of my
troubles, and that I would ride into the stream, in hope
that I might accidentally be drowned. But a second
thought occurred to me ; the horse might be drowned
too ; and as you had become responsible for his safe
return, and that you might not have him to pay for,
I did not ventm-e in, but waited till the waters had
fallen ; then went over, returned to Ohio, and delivered
the horse at the place Avhere we got him."

I now fully resolved to devote myself to the study
of the pure European German language, and wrote a
letter to Rev. T. A. Morris, then editor of the West-
ern Christian Advocate, on this subject. The letter
was published in the Advocate, accompanied with
nearly a column of editorial remarks, highly recom-
mending the course which I proposed to pursue, and
stating the great importance of doing something to
meet the Avants of our large and rapidly-increasing
German population.

These remarks from the editor tended very much
to strengthen me in my purpose to persevere in my
efforts to make myself acquainted with the German
language. I commenced to read and privately to pray
and think in German, but I had more of a task before
me than I at first was aware of; for at that time I had
no idea of its numerous declensions and inflections,
and of its copious fullness and beauty.

The next year I was appointed to Point Pleasant
circuit, in Western Virginia. Here I found a large
German settlement Avho were destitute of a preacher,

6'i GEKMAN MISSIONARIES.

and when they found I could speak some German,
they made a strong request for me to preach to them
in their own language. I excused myself on the
ground that I was not suflBciently familiar with their
language; that my mother tongue was only the so->
called Pennsylvania German, very different from the
pure written German, and that I would of course
make many blunders in trying to preach to them.
To this they replied, " We will excuse all mistakes ;
only speak to us as well as you can, and we will be
satisfied." I thereupon agreed to do so, and on the
appointed day there was a large congregation of Ger-
mans out. They were hungry for the word of life,
and I looked at them with pity. I arose in the con-
gregation, and tried to speak. My sentences were
disconnected and badly constructed ; yet many of my
hearers were deeply affected, and wept profusely
when they heard the name of Jesus and Savior in
their own language, in a public assembly. My own
heart was deeply affected. After speaking to them
for a short time, I read to them the General Rules of
our Society, translated by brother Nast. Seeing their
earnestness and great desire for religious instruction,
I could not but think of the many Germans scattered
all over our country like sheep without a shepherd.
I believed that the Lord would yet convert brother
Nast, and send him forth among the thousands of
Germans to collect them to the fold of Christ.

During this year, 1835, brother Nast was con-
verted — delivered from the bondage of sin, and
brought into the liberty of God's children. When
I heard of this event, I resolved to make him a
visit at the first opportunity ; consequently, at the

ADAM MILLER. 65

close of the conference year, I returned to Ohio, and
found him at Kenyon College, in Knox county, Ohio.
As soon as he saw me, he ran to me with extended
arms, threw them around my neck, and exclaimed,
" 0, brother Miller, I feel very different from what I
did when I saw you in Virginia. Bless the Lord ! he
has delivered me from all my fears." How changed
his countenance, his language, his manner ! The
whole man was changed. He was no longer the de-
sponding and self-despairing mourner, looking in
every direction for help, and finding none, but the
joyful follower of the Savior, full of the power of his
grace, with the Gospel word like a fire shut up in his
bones, and anxious to proclaim this salvation to his
countrymen.

After an evening's conversation at brother Nast's
room, in the college building, I told him I would go
to the hotel for my lodging. "No," said brother
Nast, " you are my guest ; you sleep on my cot and I
will sleep on the floor ;" and nothing but my comply-
ing with this request would satisfy him. "As to sup-
per," said he, " I have plenty of brown bread and
molasses." We talked till about midnight, and then
lay down to sleep, with more joyful hearts than many
others had on beds of down.

Brother Nast told me he must and would preach,
and if the Church would not receive him and give
him work, he would teach in some college and de-
vote the proceeds of his labors toward supporting
a preacher.

Soon after his conversion he was licensed to preach,
and commenced his missionary labors among the Ger-
mans. At the conference in 1835 he received his

6

66 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

first appointment as missionary to the Germans in
Cincinnati. An account of his labors will be given in
connection with his own experience.

In this year I was removed from Western Virginia
to the Indiana line, and appointed to Greenville cir-
cuit. It may not be inappropriate to give a sketch
of some of the difficulties many of us had to pass
through in those days, for the encouragement of those
who now imagine that they have many difficulties and
hardships to contend Avith. Greenville was at that
time one of the poorest circuits in the Ohio confer-
ence. It was a low, wet country, much subject to
chills and fevers ; and a majority of the people in
Greenville had the chills during the fall, and the
people through the country did not fare much bet-
ter. Soon after the conference of 1835 I was mar-
ried, and when I Avent to my circuit the people were
kind enough to let me know that they were poor, and
could not pay me much. I gave them to understand
that I was not alarmed at this; for during the previous
year, which was my last year in Virginia, I had re-
ceived only forty-five dollars as my entire salary, and
when I left the state I sold my horse and settled up
my affairs.

After waiting a day for a steamboat, and finding
none, I built me a small raft by nailing a few slabs
and planks together, and started down the Kanawha
river for the Ohio. I got a man to take my raft to
the middle of the stream, and when I was balanced
on a block of wood in the center of my craft, I found
the top of it even with the water, and had to keep
myself nicely poised to keep from being swamped.
Thus I floated with the current a distance of some

A D A M M I L L E R . 67

forty miles. The river was very high, and the cur-
rent rapid, and some time in the night I arrived at
the mouth of the river, and was taken to shore by
Captain Slye, who was out in the night on business,
and heard my loud calls for help. He came after me
with a skiff, and overtook me just as I was entering
the Ohio river. I have often since thought that this
was a hazardous and foolhardy adventure, but I have
this plea to ofier for my folly : I was far from home,
was anxious to reach it, and wanted to save every
dime I had for future emergency.

At the mouth of the Kanawha I took steamboat for
Portsmouth, and from thence went by canal to where
my old friend and benefactor, brother M'Dowell, re-
sided, in Muskingum county. I have no doubt that
many of our preachers endured similar hardships and
privations in their early itinerancy in the west, and
we only refer to them to assure our German brethren,
many of whom are now enduring privations and suf-
ferings for the Gospel's sake, that others before them
endured the same, and continued in the work under
the most pressing wants, without even thinking of
abandoning the work on account of small allowance
and consequent embarrassment.

I commenced my labors on Greenville circuit, very
much disappointed that I had not been stationed near
brother Nast's field of labor, to enable me to continue
my studies of the German language under -his instruc-
tions ; but such was the indifference with which this
matter was viewed at that time by many of the lead-
ing men of our conference, that it was not considered
important to have any more German preachers. Even
brother Nast, who had been thrown upon the hands

68 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

of the conference by the good providence and mercy
of God, was looked upon with indifference by many ;
though some thought they saw, in his accession to the
Church, the prospect of a great future work among
the Germans. I continued the study of the German
language, however, in the midst of my hard labors on
the circuit. The people were poor and could not pay
much. I bought my firewood in the country, chopped
it, and hauled it home on a small wagon. I gave les-
sons in German to some young men in Greenville,
who wished to commence the study of the language
on evenings when I was at home, for which they
kindly paid me twenty dollars.

But our prospects for a living became more gloomy
every day. I was in debt ; and wheat was high, flour
scarce, and I had no money to purchase. We used
corn bread till finally the corn gave out. I then
went to a brother in the country and made known
my wants, and told him I must have some corn, to
which he replied that he had but little to spare, and
what he had he intended to take to town to purchase
goods for a cloak. I had a cloak half worn out, which
I immediately offered him for corn. He accepted the
offer. I took the corn and gave the cloak. We
lived well on corn bread and a small quantity of
meat, and I traveled some of the coldest weather
during the winter without a cloak. Toward spring
the friends in Piqua heard of my condition, and gen-
erously bought me materials for an overcoat. By
this time my other clothes were well-nigh worn
out, and I had no money to buy, being already as
deeply in debt as I dared venture. I had the offer
of a good school if I would quit my work and go to

ADAM MILLER. 69

teaching; but I was an itinerant in the Methodist
Church and not for sale to any higher bidder. As
the last resort my excellent wife, who would not have
me stop preaching for any consideration, put patches
on my worn-out garments, and I went on preaching,
glad that I had things as comfortable as they were.

During the following summer I attended a camp
meeting near Troy, Ohio. My patched garments
soon excited the sympathy of my good friend. Rev.
G. W. Walker. He called me to take a walk with
him into the grove, and asked me why I had come
to camp meeting with such poor clothing; to which I
replied that it was the best I had, and being already
in debt, I did not feel justified in going deeper in
debt, and could get no money on the circuit to pur-
chase clothing. He gave me five dollars, with which
I bought stufi" for pantaloons and vest, and my wife
traded oif a fine watch, which she had when we were
married, for a good piece of broadcloth, out of which
I had a coat made, so that in the fall I went to con-
ference as neatly clad as most of the preachers — and
very few were aware of the difficulties I had passed
through. I may state here that we received about
ninety dollars for quarterage, house-rent, table ex-
penses, moving, etc. I mention these things in this
place to let our young German missionaries know what
hardships we formerly had to undergo.

In an early day on the frontier work we had to
endure many privations and hardships for the Gos-
pel's sake, and never thought of giving up the min-
istry on account of these embarrassments. Others
of our ministers of earlier days could tell of similar or
severer trials, but found their reward in the success

70 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

of their ministry, I kept up a correspondence with
brother Nast, and waited with great anxiety to hear
from time to time the result of his labors in Cincin-
nati. At the close of the year he reported a small
society collected under his labors ; but such was the
unpromising state of the mission in Cincinnati that it
was discontinued at the end of the year, and brother
Nast was appointed to a circuit including a large
portion of central and northern Ohio. He made his
round every six weeks. The Lord blessed his la-
bors in many places, and a number were converted.
In this way there was here and there a nucleus
formed, around which large societies have since been
raised up.

Many amusing as well as interesting scenes oc-
curred during brother Nast's first year's itinerancy.
Unaccustomed to horseback exercise, and having a
rather stubborn animal to deal with, he was fre-
quently thrown from his horse into the mud. His
horse would run from him ; and he, with his saddle-
bags on his arm, would have to travel on foot some-
times for many miles before he could overtake him.
He once told me his horse had treated him so badly
that he became almost discouraged, and it occurred
to him, as he was in the Lord's service he would lay
the matter before the Lord; so he hitched his horse and
kneeled down under a tree and prayed earnestly to
the Lord to control the bad disposition of his horse.
Those who were well acquainted with brother Nast
at that time will attribute the greatest sincerity to
him in this matter, for he made it a matter of con-
science "in every thing by prayer and supplication
to make known his requests unto God."

ADAM MILLER. 71

Dr. Nast will pardon me for relating another oc-
currence in his itinerancy, which he frequently
related to the amusement of his friends. He had
been told by some old hero of the saddle-bags he
must take good care of his own horse, curry and feed
him well, etc. Willing to follow instructions in every
thing, he went out one morning to feed and curry
his horse, and when he had gone through the opera-
tion systematically, as he thought, a stranger walked
into the stable and remarked to him, "Mr. Nast,
why did you go to the trouble of currying and feed-
ing my horse? I could have done it myself." And
not till then was he aware that he had curried the
wrong horse. So deeply absorbed in the great work
that was before him, and so earnest was he in its
accomplishment, he had not taken time nor care to
form an acquaintance with his own horse.

During the year that brother Nast traveled on his
extensive circuit I labored on West Union circuit, and
again devoted much of my time to prosecuting the
study of the German language. In the following
year brother Nast was returned to Cincinnati as a
missionary, and I was appointed to Milford circuit,
near Cincinnati, to enable me, as my presiding elder
told me, to meet with brother Nast and get instruc-
tions from him. This was in the year 1838. Dur-
ing this year the Lord blessed the labors of brother
Nast, and a number of souls were converted. On
the 16th of March, in the same year, I left Batavia
for Cincinnati, to assist brother Nast at a two days'
meeting. It rained and snowed on me all the way;
but I reached Cincinnati at dusk wet and cold. I
found that there was a German prayer meeting ap-

72 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

pointed at the old Asbury Chapel, a small frame
house on Main-street, at the upper end of the city.
I went to the prayer meeting. There were but a few
out, on account of the inclemency of the weather,
but those that were out were intelligent German
immigrants ; and, although I had tried to exercise
in the German language a few times in the country,
my courage failed when I was called on to pray in
German, and so I prayed in English. After meeting
I went home with brother Nast, in company with
brother Swahlen, who was then an exhorter, and one
of the first-fruits of brother Nast's labors in Cincin-
nati. We talked till after midnight on the future
prospects of the German work.

On Sabbath, March 18, 1838, at eleven o'clock, I
tried to preach to the Germans, very much at a loss
for words to express myself; many appeared deeply
affected, and I soon found that they were disposed to
make great allowance for my inaccuracies. Brother
Nast followed with an exhortation and some remarks in
reference to the sacrament of the Lord's supper, after
which I administered the sacrament to the little flock.
At three o'clock, P. M., we had a love-feast. This
was the first meeting of the kind ever held among
them, and our German brethren appeared deeply af-
fected, and were much encouraged to pray, and live,
and look for a great revival among their countrymen.

In the evening I tried to preach again, with some
more liberty ; and such was the anxiety of our German
brethren for me to succeed in my efforts that they
urged me to keep on trying, and assured me that I
would succeed if I would but persevere. Our friend.
Rev. L. L. Ilamline, afterward Bishop, but then one

ADAM MILLER. 73

of the editors of the Western Christian Advocate,
early espoused the German cause, and made many a
strong plea for us when it was a question of life or
death. He was present at this meeting in the evening,
and, at the close of my effort to preach, he related his
experience, in English, and brother Nast interpreted
it in German. The Germans listened with great atten-
tion, and Avhat he said undoubtedly made a deep im-
pression on the minds of all.

This, I presume, was the first German sacramental
meeting ever held among the foreign Germans in the
Methodist Episcopal Church. One thing especially
arrested my attention during the progress of this
meeting. In their prayers, and in the relation of their
experience in love-feast, they frequently expressed
their gratitude to God that, in his good providence,
the Methodist Church had sent them a preacher to
teach them the way of life ; and, undoubtedly, since
that day thousands of ardent prayers and devout
thanks have ascended to a throne of grace, from the
renewed hearts of the Germans, at a recollection of
the interest which the Methodist Church has taken in
their behalf.

In the following year, 1839, I was appointed to the
circuit around Cincinnati, and had frequent opportu-
nities to visit the mission, and join in the exercises of
worship with brother Nast, and brother Schmucker,
who followed brother Nast, in 1839, when the former
was 'called to the editorship of the Christian Apol-
ogist, the first number of which was issued on the first
of January in this year.

At the commencement of this conference year, the
question came up at the conference in reference to

74 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

publialiing a German paper, and the appointment of
another German missionary. Some were in favor of
abandoning the work ; some looked on with indiffer-
ence, and professed to see no prospect of doing much
among these infidel and Roman Catholic Germans;
while others argued that we had not the means to ex-
pend in this way. The editors of the Western Chris-
tian Advocate, brothers Elliott and Hamline, had taken
a decided stand in favor of the German cause, and had
published many a strong plea for it in their paper; and
just at a point in the conference, when brother Hamline
thought the interests of this infant cause was in jeop-
ardy, he arose in his place and addressed the presi-
dent and the conference in one of the most eloquent
pleas we have ever listened to on a conference floor.
Those who looked with great interest on the move-
ments of the Church in reference to the German work,
were much rejoiced to find so able an advocate for our
cause, and we all felt, after the address of brother
Hamline, and witnessing the impression it made on
the minds of the conference, that the crisis was past.
In this we were not disappointed. The Church came
to the work nobly ; those who had looked on with in-
difference espoused the cause heartily. And now,
looking back twenty years and witnessing the results
that have followed, we can more fully appreciate the
importance of this advocacy of our cause at that
time. The German paper was commenced, and has
made its weekly visits to thousands of German fami-
lies from that day to this. Eternity alone can tell
how many a wanderer has been brought to the fold of
Christ, by reading the evangelical truths it has borne
upon its pages to its thousands of readers.

ADAM MILLER. 75

In the year 1839 I was appointed to labor among
the Germans in the bounds of the Cincinnati and
Lebanon districts; and, in the year 1840, a German
district, to which I was appointed, was formed in the
bounds of what is now included in the Cincinnati con-
ference. During this year I visited not only the few
appointments in the district where preachers were
regularly stationed, but also other points where I
found German settlements, both in towns and country-
places. A similar district was formed in the bounds
of the Pittsburg conference, in the year 1840, and
brother N. Callender was appointed to labor on it.
By his judicious management, and untiring zeal for
the German cause, he contributed much toward ex-
tending the work in the bounds of his district.

It will, however, not be in accordance with the de-
sign of this work to enter into a detailed account of
the different fields of labor occupied by the German
missionaries ; my aim is to exhibit the evangelical
character of these missionary operations, by giving
an account of the awakening, conversion, and call to
the ministry of the men who have been instrumental
in carrying it forward.

76 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

CHAPTER III.

WILLIAM NAST, D. D. — HIS TRAINING AND
LABORS.

On account of long personal and very intimate
acquaintance with Dr. Nast, since he has neither
leisure nor disposition at this time to write an ex-
tended narrative of his past life himself, I must give
the reader only an outline sketch of his history.

William Nast was born in Stuttgart, the capital of
Wirtemberg, Germany. His father was counselor of
finances, and connected with the affairs of the govern-
ment. He was a man who feared God; and, accord-
ing to the light which he had, he walked in the right
way, and in his latter years experienced justification,
by faith in Christ. His mother, also in advanced
life, experienced the same blessing: and both, it is
hoped, have gone to their reward in heaven. His
three sisters, older than himself, were early taught
the pure doctrines of the Gospel. They belonged to
the more pious class of the Lutheran Church, and
under the instructions they received in early youth
they all embraced religion and led pious lives.

From a small boy, under the training of his oldest
sister, as brother Nast has often told me, he felt draw-
ings of the Savior, and often prayed, and tried to be
pious. His sisters were all married to clergymen of
the Lutheran Church, and consequently he had early

WILLIAM NAST,D.D, 77

and numerous privileges with regard to religious in-
struction, especially under the pious care of his oldest
sister. In his eighth year he was sent from home to
a boarding-school, from which he was taken in his
thirteenth year, and sent to school to his brother-in-
law, a Lutheran minister, distinguished for his piety
as well as for his learning. His teacher gave him a
pure evangelical education, and prepared him for
confirmation according to the usages of the National
Church in Germany.

During these instructions he was truly convinced of
sin, and deeply penitent. He said he felt the load of
his sins pressing upon him; and, as soon as the cere-
mony of confirmation was over, he hastened through
the rain into the field, kneeled down and prayed the
Lord to give him a new heart, that he might be able
to keep his vows. He has told me frequently that the
Lord blessed him, and he felt happy, and that he then
and there resolved to devote himself to the missionary
work. Little did he or his friends then think that he
would finally be so extensively engaged in a great
missionary movement, among his own countrymen in
the New World. He has frequently remarked that if,
at the time of his confirmation, he had had the privilege
of Methodist class meetings and love-feast meetings,
he would have grown in grace, and in the knowledge
of the truth, and thus might have escaped the thou-
sands of sorrows and mental gloom through which he
had to pass in after life.

His father died about the time of his confirmation
and this was the means of strengthening his pious
resolutions ; and he frequently attended the meetings
of the Pietists, who hold private religious meetings,

78 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

though members of the Established Church. He
wanted to go to the. Mission-Institute at Basle, but
his relations had destined him for the ministry in
the Established Church.

Those Avho are designed for the ministry get their
education free; and fifty young men are annually
taken to one of the four preparatory theological
seminaries. Here he "was placed in a situation that
was injurious to his religious life. Two of the pro-
fessors were decided rationalists, and there were
scarcely any of the young men in the school who
were religiously inclined. The classics were con-
stantly read, and the heroes of Greece and Rome,
with their poets and philosophers, were exhibited as
the models of every thing that was good and great.
The prophecies concerning Christ were all explained
away, and the miracles accounted for on natural prin-
ciples. In fact, they had no religious education, and
it was a solemn mockery to make any pretension to
religion and follow the teachings of these men.

In brother Nast's class were some of the most
wicked as well as the most talented young men of his
country ; about twelve of whom have since distin-
guished themselves by their writings on theology and
politics. Among these is Dr. Strauss, well known by
the publication of his "Life of Jesus." This work
aims at sapping the very foundation of religious truth.

Brother Nast at first refused to study his Icssonsj
on the Sabbath day, and felt a great need of a deeperj
work of grace. His sister wrote to him, and in-j
structed him according to the light they had, at thel
same time warning him against S2)iritual pride. This
only brought confusion to his mind, and he did notJ

AYILLIAMNAST,D.D. 79

know liow far he could go in making a profession of
religion, and not lay himself liable to the charge of
being spiritually proud. Thus surrounded by tempta-
tions without, and fears within, opposed by his fellow-
students for his seriousness, and without a friend to
take him by the hand, and explain to him the way of
the Lord more perfectly, he finally yielded to tempta-
tion, threw off restraints, and became an intimate
friend of Strauss, who, in after years, distinguished
himself by his infidel writings. Thus, by associating
with the ungodly, he was led away further into the
mazes of error, till he became a skeptic. -,

At the close of four years of study in this depart-
ment he went up with his class to the University,
where the first tAvo years were devoted to the study
of mental philosophy and its kindred branches. In
conversation with Dr. Nast, in reference to his feel-
ings as a skeptic, he made the following remarks: "I
always respected religion, and frequently in my re-
flecting moments felt a deep concern with regard to
the awful realities of the future. The Bible, I knew,
taught the necessity of a holy life, and I thought,
after all, the Bible might be true ; and if true, all
that it contains about Christ — sin — holiness — and a
future state of righteous retribution, must follow.
Under these reflections I often felt the necessity of
being prepared by grace for a future state, but I had
now become too wicked to give my heart to God." In
reference to his preparation for, and entrance upon,
the ministry of the Established Church in his father-
land, I insert a communication he made to me a few
years ago on this subject. " During the two years in
the University," says he, "I got lost in the labyrinth

80 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

of Pantheism, the most modern form of German
rationalism. After I had passed my philosophical
examination, which is equivalent to graduating in an
American college, I came to the determination not to
enter the three years' course of theology, which suc-
ceeds the philosophical course, and voluntarily with-
drew from the theological institution. My remaining
in the Church would have secured me wealth, honor,
and ease ; but my conscience did not permit me to
profess and teach a doctrine which I did not believe
from the heart, or which, at least, I interpreted in a
different sense from the Church. I was not Avilling,
for the sake of a living, or to please friends, to make
a solemn promise of preaching, according to the Arti-
cles of Religion in the Lutheran Church, which ration-
alism had taught me to reject, and which I saw were
rejected by most of the doctors of divinity and their
scholars. I was conscious, too, that according to the
teachings of the holy Scripture I was not a Christian ;
and nothing appeared more absurd to me than that a
man who is himself unreconciled to God, and resists
his Holy Spirit, should dare to preach the word of
reconciliation. I preferred to sacrifice all my prop-
erty to pay back the cost of my education which I
had received from the state, rather than proceed and
enter into the ministry so utterly unfit for such a
solemn calling."

By thus refusing to enter the ministry he was
thrown upon his own resources, and compelled to seek
his living by his literary labors. He went to see a
great poet in the north of Germany, and for some
time, during his residence in that part of the country,
he wrote reviews of light literature and theatrical

WILLIAM NAST,D.D. 81

performances ; but he soon met with disappointments
and returned home.

In the year 1828, hearing some fine accounts from
America, and especially openings for classical teach-
ers, he set out for the new country to seek his home
and support among strangers in a strange land. He
has frequently told me that, on leaving his pious rela-
tions in Germany, he again thought he would become
a better man and a Christian. He brought a letter
of introduction to a distinguished clergyman of the
Lutheran Church in America ; but the cool treatment
he received made him bitter against the Church. He
then went to a German doctor, the father of one of
his University friends, and there privately began to
study the English language, at Millersburg, on the
Susquehanna river. Here he fell in with an Ameri-
can gentleman, who took him into his house as a tutor
of his children, and during his stay at this place he
formed an acquaintance with a Unitarian preacher,
who manifested great kindness toward him. Just as
he was on the point of becoming a Unitarian and a
Universalist, his friend had to move to the east.

Mr. Nast was recommended as a tutor to a Meth-
odist family, and here he became acquainted with
several Methodist preachers of the Baltimore confer-
ence. From the kind treatment which he received
here, and from his mingling with these pious people,
he soon became convinced of the folly of skepticism,
and resolved again to try to be a Christian. After
remaining one year in this Methodist family he was
called to West Point, the seat of the military academy.
Here the providence of God singularly opened the
way to deliver him from his skepticism. He fell in

82 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

with two young officers who had been converted un-
der the preaching of Bishop M'llvainc ; he read with
them the Hebrew, and translated " Tholuck's Conver-
sation with the Skeptic."

By this time he had evidently regained a longing
desire for spiritual food, and on the Sabbath day,
not satisfied with the dry sermons which were read
to the military students, he was accustomed to go
down to a little chapel on the commons to hear
brother Romer, a preacher of the New York con-
ference. He was generally much affected under
brother Romer's preaching, and had earnest longings
to be a Christian. At the annual examination at
West Point, he heard, on one occasion. Dr. Fisk
preach, and this sermon made a deep impression upon
his mind.

On inquiring into the cause of brother Nast's great
distress of mind while undet awakening, and why dur-
ing much of this time he inflicted such severe pen-
ance upon himselfj I learned the following facts:
During his stay at West Point he read Bishop Jer-
emy Taylor's "Rules of Holy Living," and set to
work in good earnest to make himself holy. This
was the rock on which he came near making fearful
shipwreck. He depended too much upon his own
exertions, instead of being willing to be saved by
grace. He lived abstemiously, studied hard, and im-
posed many a grievous burden upon himself, because,
as he told me, " his reason could not comprehend how
it would be consistent with divine justice that the
sinner should be absolved from the guilt and penalty
of his sins ivitliout suffering in part Jiimself for his
sins." He formed an acquaintance with Bishop

WILLIAMNAST,D.D. 83

M'llvaine, of the Protestant Episcopal ChurcL, Presi-
dent elect of Kenyon College, and through his in-
fluence he afterward went to Kenyon College as
teacher. Various offers were made to him from dif-
ferent places, but before engaging himself perma-
nently any where he went to see the Methodist fam-
ily in which he had been tutor. Here he met Rev.
D. Steele, of the Baltimore conference, who, with
some others, was going to camp meeting in the Tus-
carawa Valley, on the banks of the Juniata river.
Brother Nast accompanied them in a boat chartered
by the Methodists ; and while they sung their hymns
and appeared happy, he became more sensible of his
spiritual poverty. With fair prospects for this life
he felt that he had none for the future. The
thoughts of his past life and the many opportunities
for doing good that had been neglected weighed
heavily upon his mind. He looked at these Meth-
odists as the happiest people he had ever mingled
with, and instead of despising and ridiculing them he
wished himself as happy as they were. His heart
was broken up and his eyes became a fountain of
tears at the recollection of his past life.

At this camp meeting he went to the sacrament of
the Lord's supper, and was much melted down and
humbled in view of his past sins. He believed that
the Lord blessed him, and had he then gone on be-
lieving in Christ and trusting in his merits he would
undoubtedly have grown in grace and advanced in
the way to everlasting life. But the adversary of
his soul was not willing to give him up, and soor.
clouds of darkness were gathered around him; and I
have seldom if ever known a case of such deep men-

84 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

tal sufferings. He went from place to place mquir ■
ing and looking for relief from his sorrows, inflicting
upon himself the severest sufferings— fasting, pray-
ing, exposing himself to inclement weather, and en-
during various kinds of hardship. He still remained
in the delusion before mentioned, that the sinner
must suffer in himself a certain amount of punish-
ment for his sins. And, considering himself a great
sinner, he thought no punishment would be too se-
vere for him to endure. On one occasion he actu-
ally held his finger in a burning candle till it burned
into a crisp, in order to wake himself up to a sense
of his lost condition. Sometimes he was strongly
tempted to believe that his day of grace was past — ■
that there was no hope nor mercy for him. He
labored under the most dreadful apprehensions with
regard to the future, and often wandered alone in
his agony through the woods. While his distress was
great on account of his own case, he in imagination
saw before him the opening pit, and crowds of poor
souls going down to perdition. cy

In this condition brother Barnitz, of New Oxford,
near Gettysburg, a true son of consolation, with his de-
voted wife, heard of him, and took him to their house,
talked kindly to him, reading with him "Fletcher's
Appeal" and "Address to Seekers of Salvation."
Gloamings of hope and clouds of despair would alter-
nately pass before him. Sometimes a ray of hope
would spring up, and then all was dark again. After
spending several months in this kind family he left,
fearing that he might become burdensome to the
family, and that to stay would be imposing upon
their generosity. He wanted to be away from soci-

WILLIAM NAST, D. D. 85

ety, and yet he was anxious to find some one who
might comfort and encourage him.
^ lie finally came to Pittsburg, and hearing of a
camp meeting in the vicinity, conducted by Rev.
Charles Elliott, who was then presiding elder on the
district, he went to this camp meeting, and under the
preaching of a sermon from these words, "Ho every
one that thirsteth, come ye to the water," he felt
hope again springing up. The Spirit of God carried
the truth to his heart, and after he had prayed in
the wood he felt some relief; but still the enemy
assaulted him with his temptations, and soon a cloud
of darkness was over his mind. In all his trials he
found friends to sympathize with him. Some of his
friends took him to a very pious old Christian lady,
by the name of Patrick, who talked very kindly and
encouragingly to him, and on one occasion on a sick-
bed, expecting to die, said to him, " William, do n't
doubt. You will get the blessing ; the Lord has a
great work for you to do. You will yet take the
Gospel trumpet, and publish the Savior's name to
your countrymen." I well recollect having heard of
this prediction of sister Patrick when I was at Zanes-
ville, Ohio, the first time I heard of brother Nast.

From Pittsburg he went to Wheeling, Virginia, and
staid over night with brother Lambdin, an old Meth-
odist preacher, and related to him his sad and
hopeless condition. Brother Lambdin encouraged
him, and he went on his way through Zanesville to
Kenyon College, in Knox county, Ohio, where he
had a situation as a teacher. Here he found Pro-
fessor Buckingham, one of his old West Point
friends, and in vacation he went with the Professor to

V

86 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

Putnam. During this visit he heard Rev. Henry S.
Fernandes preach, and under his ministry and by his
kind treatment and loving Christian conversation his
fears were in some degree removed. Upon his return
to Kenyon College his distress of mind came on
again, and he visited Putnam the second time to see
brother Fernandes, with a hope of deriving aid and
encouragement from him. He was not in town at
the time, but brother Nast became acquainted with a
brother Cubbage, who was going down the Mus-
kingum river with a flat-boat, and who invited him
to go along. Accordingly he did so. They went
down the Muskingum to the Ohio, and down the
Ohio to Gallipolis, and from this place he went to
Mr. Newton's, where I found him, as stated in a pre-
vious chapter.

■~~' I will now give a more particular account of his
conversion, and the commencement of his ministry.
After his return from Western Virginia his deep dis-
tress of mind and penitence for his past sins con-
tinued, and he visited the different meetings within his
reach; frequently approached the altar of prayer,
and continued for hours upon his knees seeking for
mercy; still there appeared no comfort for him. He
afterward told me that when he was praying he seemed
to have a pair of scales before him, and putting his
repentance on one side, and his sins on the other, he
never could make an even balance, depending too
much upon his own exertion, instead of looking di-
rectly to Christ for salvation. In this condition he
went to a quarterly meeting, held in the town of Dan-
ville, Knox county, Ohio; Rev. Adam Poe was the
presiding elder of the district. There was a powerful

WILLIAM NAST,D.D. 87

revival in progress at the meeting, and a number were
awakened and converted. He, with others, went for-
ward for the prayers of the Church ; but no one there
knew any thing of the peculiarities of his condition.
He prayed with his usual fervor and earnestness; and,
after a while, arose to leave the church ; looking back
upon the happy converts, and hearing them shout
aloud the praise of God, suddenly these words, " There
is bread enough in my Father's house," were im-
pressed with divine power upon his mind. His spirit-
ual eyes were opened to see the fullness of the merit
of Christ. In that moment, thinking no more of his
want of qualifications, he resolved to approach the
mercy-seat once more. He hastened back to a corner
of the house, fell on his knees to plead once more
Avith God for mercy, but as he this time offered noth-
ing but Jesus, the moment he opened his mouth to ask
his prayer was answered. He was filled with joy un-
utterable and full of glory, and obtained the long-
sought witness of the Spirit, clearer than the light of
the sun. This was on the 17th of January, 1835.
He returned to the college and told the students and
professors what the Lord had done for him; called
them together, and kneeled down and prayed Avith
them, and gave thanks to God for his goodness to him.

He was soon afterward licensed to preach, and by
the quarterly conference recommended to be received
into the traveling connection. Rev. Adam Poe, his
presiding elder, took a deep interest in his case, and
presented his recommendation to the conference, held
in Springfield, Ohio, in the fall of 1835.

Numerous objections were made to the establish-
ment of a German mission, and that too by some of

88 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

the most influential members of the conference.
Brother Poe, however, enhsted Rev. J. B. Finley,
and some others, in behalf of the new project, and
brother Nast was admitted into the conference. But,
after all, such was the indijBFerence with which it was
viewed, that very limited appropriations were made for
the support of the mission, and during brother Nast's
first year he received an appropriation of one hundred
dollars. During his second year on his large mission,
for himself and his wife, he received only one hun-
dred and fifty. He was returned to Cincinnati in
1837 and '38, when provisions were very high, but he
received only one hundred dollars more; though, at
the same time, he was ofi'ered a professorship in a
college with a salary of eight hundred.

I have mentioned these things, not in the spirit of
boasting or complaining, but to show that the provi-
dence of God opened the way and carried on this
work. There had been no deep-laid plans, no great
preparations or calculations on the part of the Church
for carrying on this work; and now we may say, "let
no man glory in men," but give all praise to God for
the success with which he has crowned the labors of
his servants in this department of our missionary
work.

After having made these outline statements, in refer-
ence to the awakening and conversion of brother Nast,
and the origin of the German missions, I close this
chapter with the hope that Dr. Nast may be induced,
at some future day, to publish an extended memoir of
himself, and a full account of his labors among the
Germans.

JOHNSWAHLEN. 89

CHAPTER lY.

EXPERIENCE OF JOHN SWAHLEN.

I "WAS born in Switzerland, December 25, 1808 ;
and, on the 1st of January, 1809, was dedicated to
God in holy baptism. I lost my mother in my sixth
year: my father's sister, a woman that feared God,
discharged the duties of a mother to me. I heard
her, on one occasion, relate her experience, which
made a deep impression on my mind.

When I was fourteen years old I was put under in-
struction to prepare me for confirmation, according to
the customs of the Reformed Church in that place;
and if the preacher, under whose care I was, had been
a converted man, I am convinced that I might then
have been converted. It was a very solemn matter
for me to renew my baptismal vow, in taking upon
myself the obligations of confirmation ; and I also had
at that time an especial inclination to devote myself
to God.

The preacher gave each of those that were con-
firmed a certificate of confirmation, containing some
texts of Scripture. Mine had the following : 1 Tim-
othy iv, 12, "Let no man despise thy youth; but be.
thou an example of the believers, in word, in conA^en*"-
sation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity;" and
Titus ii, 7, "In all things shewing thyself a pattern
of good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness,

S

90 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

gravity, sincerity." This made a deep impression on
my mind.

As I heard of migration to America I became very
desirous to go. Finally, my older brother and my-
self concluded to go to America; and on the 12th of
December, 1832, we arrived safely at New Orleans.
In this strange country my mind was first more es-
pecially directed to temporal things ; but, in the sum-
mer of 1835, I had many drawings of the Holy Spirit,
and much desired to form an acquaintance with pious
persons, but knew not where to find them. I some-
times went to Church, and was often affected under
the sermon ; but I saw that the people knew as little
of religion as I did, and I sought for some one that
would take me by the hand and lead me in the way of
salvation.

I had often heard of the Methodists, but never
heard any thing good of them ; yet I became desirous
to hear them for myself. I thought perhaps they
were persecuted for righteousness' sake. How to hear
them I did not know. English I could not under-
stand, and of German Methodist preachers there were
none. While thinking of the great number of Ger-
mans in Cincinnati going astray like myself, I con-
cluded that if the Methodists were the people of God,
they would also be induced to send preachers to the
Germans. In this I was not disappointed, for, in the
fall of the same year, the Ohio conference sent the
Rev. Wm. Nast to Cincinnati, and as soon as I heard
of it I inquired for him, and went to hear him the
first time in the Fourth-street Methodist Church.
The sermon cut me to the heart as I had never been
before. The second time I heard him in the old frame

JOHN SW All LEN. 91

church on Main-street, called " Asbury Chapel."
Here I was called on to come to a determination.
He invited seekers of religion to come to the altar of
prayer. Finally, I thought that the whole world can
not help me Avhen I come to die, and so arose and
went to the altar, but did not obtain an evidence of
the pardon of my sins. About three weeks after this,
as I Avas going home from a meeting, with my heart
all melted and broken up, I went to my chamber,
several times falling on my knees. While praying to
God, I, for the first time, felt the love of God power-
fully shed abroad in my heart.

I thank God that he put it into the hearts of the
Methodists to send preachers among the Germans.
If this had not been the case I might have been cut
down as a fruitless cumberer of the ground. In the
year 1836 brother Nast was sent into the country,
and in 1837 he was returned to the city once more
to preach to his countrymen repentance and faith.
Without detailing all the difficulties we had to pass
through in our first efforts to form a class among the
Germans in Cincinnati, I will state that, as I felt a
great desire for the salvation of my countrymen, and
to do something to advance the cause which had done
so much for me, I was recommended for license to
exhort. I received my first license in 1838, and in
the fall of the same year I was sent to Wheeling to
see if any thing could be done for the Germans there.
Having found twelve persons who were seeking their
salvation, I remained with them, exhorting them and
praying with them two weeks, during which time a
class of twenty-four was formed, and after a glorious
two weeks' meeting" I returned to Cincinnati and

92 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

reported Avhat the Lord had done for us. Some time
after this the quarterly conference at Wesley Chapel
granted me license to preach, and Bishop Morris sent
me back to Wheeling to take care of the little flock.
In July, 1839, I was received on trial into the Pitts-
burg conference, and was returned as missionary to
Wheeling.

God was with us in this new mission, sinners were
awakened and converted, and we soon found ourselves
under the necessity of building a house of worship.
Although the times were hard, we went to work in
good earnest. Our German brethren took a deep in-
terest in this work, and gave very liberally to help it
forward. I laid the matter before our English breth-
ren, and they helped us liberally. We commenced
the work in faith, and the Lord helped us. By the I
next conference our house was finished, and we had
eighty-three members. This was the first German
Methodist Episcopal Church built in this country. It
was dedicated by brother Nast. His heart was filled
with gratitude to God for that which he had done for
us. But if we now look over our German missionary
work, we have abundant reason to bow in gratitude
before God. May he continue to bless us !

Gf. A. BREUNIG. 93

CHAPTER V.

EXPERIENCE OF G. A. BREUNIG.

I WAS born in Germany, of Roman Catholic parents,
who used their best endeavors to have me instructed
in every thing necessary to my present and everlast-
ing well-being. I was early made acquainted with
the various means of grace and sacraments, of which
the Roman Catholic Church acknowledges seven ;
namely, baptism, confirmation, sacrament of the
Lord's supper, penance, extreme unction, holy or-
ders, and marriage. Notwithstanding she is so rich
in the means of grace, and I had observed the most
of them, yet I was ungodly, and became more so
from day to day. I sought the pleasures of the world
as much as was in my power, and my disposition for
those things increased daily. I was, however, not con-
cerned on that account, for I comforted myself with
the reflection that I was a Catholic Christian. Often
I heard from the pulpit, in the school, and from my
parents, how much better we were off than thousands
of our fellow-men who were not Roman Catholic
Christians, and on that account could have no hope
of salvation.

When I thought of dying, it is true, I did not ex-
pect to go to heaven directly, but to purgatory, of
which I was not so much afraid, because it was only
for a time. Yet, upon occasions, I felt very restless,

94 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

on account of my sins, and tlicn would go to confes-
sion. This was always a hard task for me ; because
I had been taught in the school that no sins dare be
kept secret, but that each particular sin, of whatever
kind it might be, must be faithfully related to the
priest.

I was always very much ashamed of confessing;
and it often happened that I spent the afternoon of
the holy Sabbath in committing the same sins which
I had confessed in the forenoon, and for which I bad
taken the sacrament. My conscience, however, from
time to time, reminded me of death and judgment ;
but I endeavored to dismiss such thoughts by observ-
ing the conduct of my fellow-men, who were esteemed
good Christians. Even our school-teacher, Avho was
considered a good Christian, was a distinguished lover
of card-playing and dancing ; and not till some years
after, when an illegitimate daughter sued him for her
part of the inheritance, and in that manner made
manifest his disgrace, were the eyes of the people ,lj
opened to his real character. My preacher, also, was
often seen at the card-table and in the dancing-room,
and this, withal, on the Lord's day ! May the Savior
open the eyes of the deceiver as well as the deceived !

Till my twenty-third year I participated in all the
pleasures of the world, although I went, from time to
time, according to custom, to confession. On one
occasion the Pope proclaimed a jubilee throughout all
Roman Christendom. Men were to be released from
all present and eternal punishment by following cer-
tain precepts ; namely, to visit a certain number of
churches, to repeat a certain number of prayers each
day, to abstain from certain meats, go to confession

G. A. BREUNIG. 95

and communion ; and should one die during this time,
he was not to go to purgatory, but immediately to
heaven. I now expected to be made free from all the
burden of my sins, and therefore observed all the
precepts punctiliously ; but my corroding conscience
did not suffer itself to be thus quieted; my soul
thirsted for something else.

God by his Holy Spirit powerfully called me, and I
promised him to mend my life. I began to feel an
inward hatred to the sins which I had previously
loved — I kept myself from all vain company, and be-
came fond of reading and praying. I endeavored to
keep my serious impressions from others; yet my
father and the family soon observed that there was a
great change in me. The Lord permitted me to see
the nature of my sins, so that I took a dislike to
ungodly people, and looked around me in vain to
find good people. I then thought if I would go to
America I might there serve God in solitude ; but much
as I wanted to go I lacked the means. By his good
providence the Lord inclined the heart of a very
rich neighbor of ours to go to America. I made
known to him my condition and desire to go with
him, and upon my request he advanced the money
to pay my passage. We came over in the year 1833,
and through the blessing of God in two years rafted ^
our arrival I was able to pay my benefactor.

When I arrived in Baltimore I embraced the first .
opportunity to go to confession and to communion,
and renewed my determination to lead a life well
pleasing to God. Soon after this I became ac-
quainted with a Lutheran, who was a very friendly
man. As often as we conversed together on the

d6 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

subject of religion deep sighs would arise from my
breast. He smiled, and asked me why I sighed.
Upon this I disclosed to him the condition of my
soul. He praised God, and said this was the new
birth. I was much astonished at what he told me,
and was rejoiced to have found a man to whom I
could open my heart. I endeavored, accordingly, to
believe his instruction, that God had pardoned my
sins ; but I could believe this only at certain times ; at
other times my faith would forsake me entirely, be-
cause I yet felt the dominion of sin, and had a tor-
menting fear of death. Not till three years after-
ward did I experience that this Avas not the new
birth, but only the commencement of the work of
grace — that the new-born soul feels peace with God
through Jesus Christ, and obtains an evidence as
clear as a sick man feels when he has found a remedy
for his disease. To tell, however, how I obtained this
I. must again return to my Lutheran friend.

He exhorted me to read the Bible, and especially
the New Testament; and said when I prayed I
should pray to no one but God, in the name of Jesus
Christ; that I should not call upon the saints nor
the Virgin Mary to make intercessions for me, for
Jesus Christ is the only mediator and intercessor be-
tween God and man. He told me that the Roman
Catholic held some injurious and gross errors. This
I did not like to hear; and I answered that the Ro-
man Church commands nothing that is unnecessary —
that it was all good and wholesome if correctly used ;
yet scruples entered my mind in reference to my
answer. I asked myself whether I had not kept all
things that the Church commanded me, and whether

G. A. BREUNIG. 97

I was not, after all, a poor sinner, exposed to damna-
tion ? I therefore followed the counsel of my friend,
and commenced to read the New Testament. Wisely
he pointed me to the following passages: "A bishop,
then, must be the husband of one wife — one that
ruleth well his own house, having his children in
subjection with all gravity." 1 Timothy iii, 1-5.
Again: "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in
the latter times some shall depart from the faith,
giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of dev-
ils; speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their con-
science seared with a hot iron; forbidding to marry,
and commanding to abstain from meats, which God
hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them
which believe and know the truth. For every crea-
ture of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it
be received with thanksgiving : for it is sanctified by
the word of God and prayer." 1 Timothy iv, 1-5.
These passages brought me to reflection. Above all,
I wished to examine whether the Lutheran Bible
agreed with the Catholic. I therefore borrowed a
Catholic Testament. The comparison of one with
the other, convinced me that these passages were the
same in both. God gave me grace to believe that
it was his infallible word, and that men are fallible
and liable to turn aside from his word.

I now visited my friend frequently, in order to ob-
tain an opportunity to read in his Bible. My confi-
dence increased, and I obtained more and more light;
yet I did not think that I would leave the Roman
Catholic Church, and I continued two years in this
determination. I went diligently to Church and em-
braced all opportunities to serve God. During this

9

98 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

time it also happened that a Catholic offered to sell
me a New Testament. lie said he had read enough
in it in his youth, and would have nothing more to
do with it. I gave him fifty cents for it, and was
now very much rejoiced that I, for myself, had once
obtained a New Testament. My delight in reading
increased from day to day. My conscience like-
wise became more and more tender. I spent all
my evening hours in reading. My spiritual eyes
were more and more opened, and the light shone
brighter and brighter. The words of the Gospel
shone into my heart. The words of Jesus were to
me quickening, full of comfort and instruction. Soon
after this I bought myself a Bible, which I read in
my shop, in order to improve every leisure moment
I had in reading. I also sometimes went into the
Lutheran Church, not with any intention to forsake
my own, but only in order to prove the doctrine. I
must, however, confess that soon I liked the preaching
and singing in the Lutheran Church much better than
the Roman Catholic worship ; for I understood what
was sung, and could join in singing; while in the mass
there was nothing for my understanding nor heart —
when it was over it was to me like an empty dream
from which one awaketh. From the Lutheran ser-
mons I likewise received more benefit, because I heard
more of Jesus, and the Avord preached according to
the teaching of the Bible.

I was now so far acquainted with the doctrines of
the Gospel that I could no longer believe in the
adoration of the saints and relics, and purgatory, and
such like things. I also no longer believed in mass,
because I never had obtained a benefit from it. It

G. A. BREUNIG. 99

was very objectionable to my mind that worship in
mass and vespers were performed in the Latin lan-
guage, which I could not understand. I could truly,
with many others, repeat the words, but I knew not
the meaning. How foolish and sinful it is to ap-
proach God in prayer without knowing what we say !
A priest who heard of me visited me during this
time, in order to warn me against falling off. I told
him that I intended to believe nothing but the Bible ;
whereupon he answered me that the primitive Chris-
tians had no Bibles, and that we dare not alone fol-
low the Bible. I told him that the primitive Chris-
tians had the Old Testament and the four Gospels,
and before the apostles departed from this world
they also had the epistles in their possession. He
sought, by all kinds of artful persuasion, to turn me
from my simplicity and sincerity in the faith of the
Gospel, and recommended a book to me which he
would send me, and which I had to promise to read.
This book I found full of pretended showings, that
the Roman Catholic was the only infallible and true
Church ; but the most of the arguments were not taken
from the Bible, but from the primitive fathers; and
among those that were taken from the Bible the sense
of the inspired writers was, in many places, misrep-
resented. So, through the preacher and the book, I
was brought to discover that, if I read and believed
the Bible, I could not remain a Roman Catholic;
and if I did remain one I must lay aside the Bible,
and content myself with what the priest told me. I
was now brought to an inward conflict. The scoffs
which I should have to endure from my acquaintances
if I went out from among them ; the ill-will of my

100 GERMAN MISSIONAEIES.

father and my relations if they should hear of it; the
fearful curse pronounced by the Church upon the dis-
obedient; these things, like great mountains, stood
in my way. On the other hand, it appeared impossi-
ble for me to lay aside the word of God, for it was
sweeter to my soul than honey or the honeycomb.
It had drawn my heart, as the magnet draws the
metal. When I read it I thought every word gave
witness that the Bible contains nothing but God's
truth.

Frequently while reading I would have almost in-
voluntarily to fall upon my knees, and with a loud
voice praise God for his unspeakable gift. However,
after I had read the priest's book, doubts and dark-
ness came upon me — my heart was broken down and
my eyes were filled with tears. At a certain time
my inward conflict rose so high that I was on the
borders of despair. I did not regard the persecu-
tion of my friends. My only concern was to find the
right way. I felt that I could no longer live without
certainty in religion. I could not depend upon man.
The Catholics could not take from me the light that
God had given to me. Neither could the Lutherans,
notwithstanding they did all they could, give me that
peace which my soul desired. In this disposition
of mind I went once, at midnight, under the open
sky, threw myself upon my knees, and called upon
God in the name of Jesus, " 0, God, thou hast said,
'If a child should ask bread of a father, would he
give him a stone? and if he should ask for a fish,
would he give him a serpent ? If ye, then, being
evil, can give good gifts unto your children, how much
more will God give the Holy Spirit to them that ask

a. A. BRETJNIG. 101

him!' 0, God, most merciful Savior, thou art not
like unto man ; thou knowest what I desire. I desire
to get upon the right way, and walk therein. 0,
teach thou me what I shall do." In this manner I
prayed for some length of time, and then retired to
my bed again. I could, however, sleep but little, for
my soul was engaged for the one thing needful. As
I entered the workshop in the morning, the first
thing I viewed was the Bible, which was lying by
the side of the priest's book, upon a bench. I felt an
inexpressible drawing toward it. I took it, kissed it,
and leaped for joy. I opened and read, and every
letter appeared to say to me, this is the way to truth.
I looked at the priest's book with disapprobation, and
returned it to its owner.

From this time I went no more to the Roman
Catholic Church. Now I was pointed at by the finger
of scorn. I, however, was not concerned about it.
My nearest friend, a rigid Catholic, did all he could
to win me back, and said I would go where Luther is.
"Yes, dear brother," replied I, "this is my earnest
desire. I firmly believe that he is in heaven" — when
I said this, my friend turned pale, and crossed him-
self — " like Huss, and many others, whom the Romish
Church executed, through her inquisitions; and had
they the power this day, I, too, would have been led
to the slaughter bench. Yet I believe that, for Jesus
and the sake of his truth, I should be willing to sufifer
all." Whereupon my friend said I had drank whisky,
and showed me the room door. I remembered that
they called my Savior a wine-bibber, and said Peter
was drunken Avith new wine, and was glad to suffer
reproach for Jesus' sake. So far God had enlightened

102 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

me througli his precious word, but I lacked some-
thing yet of being a Christian.

I was acquainted Avith some Lutheran brethren, Avho,
like myself, were seeking the salvation of their souls.
We agreed to hold a prayer meeting once a week, of
which the Lutheran preacher himself was the leader.
He was an honest man, who taught us the way as well
as he knew it himself; but as he was infirm, he soon
left us ; exhorting us, however, before his departure,
that we should continue to assemble for prayer, and
appointing me the leader. We obeyed his instruc-
tion, but found ourselves much embarrassed, because
none of us would venture to pray extemporaneously
m public, notwithstanding we could pray in secret;
but God helped us in our extremity. In the house
where we held our meeting, I met a man whom I
heard speak with the landlord on the subject of
religion, and whom I loved, and in whom I had con-
fidence. I laid our case before him, and asked him
to become our leader, to which he consented. He
opened our meeting with singing and prayer, read a
portion of Scripture, and exhorted us from it, and
then called upon us to pray. We all excused our-
selves, whereupon he concluded with prayer, himself,
and asked us wdiether we would meet again. We
met again the following Sabbath, as there was no
preaching in the Lutheran church at that time. After
he had opened the meeting, as before, he explained
to us more clearly the nature of evangelical repent-
ance ; and that upon repentance faith must follow,
through which Ave receive tlie forgiveness of our sins;
and that Avithout it Ave could not inherit the kingdom
of God. While he was speaking it pleased God to

a. A. BREUNIG. 103

baptize mc with fire and with the Holy Ghost. It
appeared to me as if mountains \aj upon my heart.
My burden pressed me so heavily that I cried aloud
to God. I sought to restrain myself, but could not.
I then cast myself into the arms of Jesus, who says :
" Come unto me, all ye that are weary and heavy
laden, and I will give you rest;" and, at once, I
obtained peace with God. Now my mouth was opened,
and I could pray and praise God; for I was made a
partaker of the Spirit, through which I could cry,
" Abba, Father." The Spirit of God gave witness to
my spirit that I was a child of God. Old things had
passed away, and behold, all things had become new.
Every word in the Bible spoke peace to my soul.
Soon afterward my wife and sixteen others received
the same blessing.

After my conversion, and the conversion of my
wife, which occurred eight days afterward, we had
no privileges to meet and converse with religious
people in our own language ; so we went to the
English Methodist Episcopal Church, and joined on
probation, in the year 1837. We w^ere then living
in Detroit, Michigan, where the Methodists had a good
society. I became much attached to the Church,
notwithstanding I could not understand nor speak
much of the English language, yet the means of
grace in the Church was a great blessing to me. On
the 11th of April I received license to exhort, and
on the 29th of June, 1839, I received license as a
local preacher. In October, the same year, I went to
Cincinnati, by the recommendation of Bishop Soule.
Here I labored with brother Schmucker, as local
preacher, till the Ohio conference, 1840, when I

104 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

was received on trial into conference and sent to
Scioto mission.

I went out in the name of the Lord, to look after
the Germans, scattered here and there, and to preach
to them a crucified Redeemer. With many tears I
scattered the seeds of Gospel truth, and during the
first year several classes were formed, and a number
were converted. During the second year more fruits
of my labor were seen, and never will I forget the
special display of the power of God in some parts of
my field of labor. At the close of my second year
I had one hundred and thirteen members on the
Church record. The following year I was transferred
to the Indiana conference.

But I can not detail the labor which I have endured,
and the hardships through which I have passed. In
looking back over my life, I am humbled at a recollec-
tion that my labor has not been in vain in the Lord.
Had I been more holy I could have done more good.
May the Lord keep us faithful !

WILLIAM AHRENS. 105

CHAPTER VI.

NARRATIVE OP WILLIAM AHRENS.

In giving a short history of my conversion, my
memory carries me back to scenes of my early child-
hood, which was spent in a village on the banks of
the Weser, in northern Germany. The beauty and
loveliness of nature around me, attracted the atten-
tion of my budding mind, and raised it up to nature's
God. Many a time I watched the fish in the brook,
the insect in the dust, and the clouds of the sky,
studying, with childish simplicity, the wisdom of God,
■while the field of waving grain, the peaceful herds
in the pasture, the flower-studded meadows, the starlit
sky, the storm-cloud with lightning and thunder, im-
pressed my mind deeply with the conviction of His
goodness and power. Along with nature, revelation
went hand in hand. There was in the house a large
family Bible, illustrated with many engravings of
highest finish, on account of which, and out of rever-
ence for its old age, it was seldom used, but only
granted to the children as a particular favor. On the
lap of a beloved grandmother I studied those pictures
with the greatest delight, and by her instructions and
explanations I got some knowledge of the great events
recorded in its history before I could read. My par-
ents being not so poor as to require my labor, gave
me the opportunity to attend the village school regu-

106 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

larly for about nine years; but, tbey not being able to
give me a more liberal education, I had, from that
time, to exchange the school for the labor of the field.

My progress in school, as also my habits at the same
time, are pretty well summed up in the words of the
schoolmaster while he was laying, with all his might in
rapid succession, a long hazelstick on my back, " I do
not punish you for any want of learning well, but for
your mischievousness." The hazelstick could not
cure me though; but as my mischief was generally
designed to amuse my school-fellows rather than to
hurt them, I was considered by them as their favorite.
But I had often convictions that I was doing wrong and
displeased God, forming at the same time some faint
resolutions to amend, being afraid of losing heaven if
I should die. These convictions were deep and the
resolutions strong, when I, together with a number of
others according to the custom of the Church, openly
before God and the congregation, renewed the baptis-
mal vow and was confirmed; and, since my conver-
sion, I have believed that if that congregation had
understood the plan of salvation, and had acted in
accordance with it, others and I would have been
converted that day; but, in place of conversion, we
had, according to the custom of the place, a frolic after
Church was over, and our vows to renounce the world,
the lust of the flesh, and the devil with all his works,
were broken before the sun set. One good deed I
did that day, however, in restraining some of our
number from fighting.

Being unconverted, without moral power, without
experience, and without even knowing the path of
life, we had stepped into the boat for the voyage of

WILLIAM AURENS. 107

life, like a frolicking party, -without helm, oar, or
compass ; and, being declared Christians bj the pastor
and the people, we pushed off from the shore, and
•were thus left to the mercy of the wind and tide.
How these carried me I must tell now in a few words.
The best and most pious preacher with whom I got
acquainted in Germany — our own pastor — preached
that dancing and the like pleasures were innocent en-
joyments; and even the preacher himself looked on,
while his wife and daughters were whirling round with
the peasants, in high glee. Another one, the same
who prepared me for confirmation, was wont, on Sun-
day afternoon, to hasten to the ball-room, or to amuse
the farmers, in a ninepin-alley, with tales of his univer-
sity-life, which would have shocked any truly-pious
heart. As whisky was considered not only a neces-
sity of life, but a dispeller of gloom, and a generator
of joy, and life, and happy feelings; and as, in the
public opinion, none was accounted a brave man who
had never been drunk ; strong drink, therefore, ac-
companied every incident of a man's life; his birth,
his baptism, his going to church, his mari'iage, his
death and funeral; his joys, his sorrows, and all his
business. By this any reader can easily judge of the
standard of morality with Avhich I was surrounded.
Indeed, I do not know that any transgression was
considered, by the great majority, a serious sin
against God, except perjury or murder; yet, it is
due to say, honesty was considered a virtue, and
pretty generally practiced. Among the whole mass
of a thousand souls of my native village, there was
but one, a poor man, who denounced the pleasures of
this world as sin in word and actions, and who de-

108 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

clared that, baptism being no regeneration, men must
be born again by the Spirit in order to attain to
heaven. Yet, as the older ones considered him a fool,
I with the rest did the same. But, along with the
general evil, there was some idea of piety in the com-
munity, which consisted in a somewhat superstitious
reverence for the house and word of God, and the
Lord's supper, besides occasional prayer and family
worship, and in going with the "wind and tide" only
on special occasions. This last was about the course
in our own family.

Every person who had been confirmed was a com-
municant in the Church; and, according to public
opinion, every one was a Christian, whether he swore
every day and prayed never — whether he went with
the tide in full or only occasionally. The dead were
all thought to have entered into glory, with perhaps
the exception of the murderer and perjurer. Such
was the state of things with which I was surrounded,
and it was about the same throughout the kingdom;
though I have lived in places where it was worse. A
Church of this character would, in this country, be
called a Universalist one, but in my country it was
the "Lutheran."

That it was next to impossible for me, or any one
else under such circumstances, to go against "the
wind and tide," can easily be imagined; but God, in
his mercy, led me away from my native village, in my
seventeenth year; and, though circumstances there
were in some respects worse, yet having no acquaint-
ance, and much work and little wages, I had not the
same opportunity to mix with the crowd as I had at
home. Besides this, my conviction that I was a sin-

WILLIAM AHEENS. 109

ner, and unfit for heaven, never left me, and was often
so strong and clear that the pleasures of the world
lost their charm, and life was on those occasions a
burden. To good and evil equally prone, I had struck
on a middle road to heaven; but there was no peace
to mj soul.

In this state of things I returned to my birth-
place, after five years' absence, where I found things
going on the usual way. Beset on all sides with
friends and acquaintances, and urged on by my own
relatives, it was not long till I was the leader in frol-
icking and amusements, to a general satisfaction.
But as my convictions rather increased than dimin-
ished, I felt myself soon in a most miserable condi-
tion. Sometimes the conviction that we all were on
the vfay to hell, would strike me like lightning in the
midst of the noise of the ball-room, so that I would,
unconscious of myself and all that was going on around
me, suddenly stand still; and, with fixed gaze, seem
to see the abyss of eternal destruction opening before
me; then, perhaps, I might be startled by a whisper
in my ear, from one of my associates, believing that
the cause of my trouble lay in my purse : " Ahrens,
if you have no money I will lend you some." Such
suspicion was to me a most unbearable reproach on
my character, and a whisper in that direction was
enough to arouse me; this the devil, who caused it,
knew very well, and with hurried steps I would hasten
to the bar, drown all my convictions in whisky, and
run the course of a fool to the great delight of my
associates.

Thus I passed years, from bad to worse, yet still I
had a hope to be converted and gain heaven at last ;

110 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

for all that I liaJ learned about conversion was, that a
person must leave off doing wrong and learn to do
right, and when doing so God would surely forgive all
transgressions. In this direction I turned my efforts
along with my ever-returning convictions of sin, ac-
companying them with prayer and supplication. I
scrupulously avoided doing wrong toward my fellow-
men, and delighted in rendering them any service;
and in going to Church I was one of the most regular
in the whole village.

Some old people congratulated me on my piety ;
the pastor held my example up as an honorable one,
and I met with none who suspected me for even a bad
man. Indeed, it was impossible for me even once to
entertain the thought that I was a Christian ; but, on
the contrary, feeling myself to be the greatest sinner,
I lived in almost constant dread of the wrath of God,
But when I saw all my efforts at converting mj^self
fail, my promises unfulfilled, and my most solemn
vows broken after every renewal, my hope began to
fail also, and I felt myself nearing the brink of de-
spair ; a gloom was settling on my mind, which made
the whole world around me look gloomy. Then I
wished I had never been born, or had died in my in-
fancy, and again I would pray God to destroy the life
of my soul eternally ; yet knowing all those wishes to
be in vain, I was tempted to cast off all restraint, en-
joy the world as much and as fast as possible, and
thus to get some compensation for my living in hell
eternally. But the mercy of God restrained me from
despair on one side, and from becoming " hardened in
sin" on the other. Among the many means which
he used were clear and sudden dangers of death ;

WILLIAM AHRENS. Ill

one of whicli, when I was about twenty-four years
old, I will here relate, on account of something in it
that is a mystery to me up to this day. Having
thrown down some feed from a hayloft above the
thrashing-floor, when making the first step down, I
felt the same moment that my foot had missed the
top bar of the ladder, and that death awaited me on
the hard floor below. As I had nothing to hold to,
the false step carried me down the same moment ; the
whole space of time allowed for thought was not more,
perhaps, than three seconds ; yet in that short space
of time there passed before my mind, not only death
and judgment, but the outline of my whole life, like
a brilliant flash of lightning, extending, like a ribbon
of fire, across the whole hemisphere. How the soul
can perform such work, I can not comprehend.

Years before this I had entertained the thought to
emigrate to America — no doubt, the Lord gave me
that thought — and when my hope of ever succeeding
in my efi"orts to live a Christian life in Germany failed,
I hoped for the possibility of it in America. Glad
was I Avhen circumstances allowed me, in the fall of
1838, to set out for the "land of liberty." In Sep-
tember I shook the parting hand with my companions
in sin, with friends and relations, and two Aveeping
sisters and a brother. My parents had entered the
better world, my beloved mother having been happily
converted on her last sick-bed, making the house echo
with her shouts of glory. When I left my native
place, which lay about one day's journey from the
port of Bremen, where I took ship, my heart was
tossed, between hope and fear, like a frail bark on the
stormy ocean. It longed after rest, and was fully

112 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

convinced that the world, with all its pleasures and
riches, could not give this rest. It had a faint im-
pression that rest was alone found in God ; but all
the different ways I had tried failed, and the right
and sure one I did not know. My burden was too
heavy and the heart too full; I fell on my knees,
lifted my heart up in prayer to the same God whom I
had offended so long, and begged from him the for-
giveness of my sins and a safe journey, as also to
lead me to a communion of true Christians, promising
to fulfill my vows in America.

Under the shadow of his protecting wings I arrived
safely at New Orleans, on the 6th of November, where
I met a schoolmate and former associate in sin.
With his help I soon got work where he was em-
ployed ; but for serving God I found circumstances
most unfavorable, especially as my schoolmate was
poisoned with infidelity. But once he told me that
at Cincinnati there was a curious sort of people.
" They pray much ; but they do not drink, nor dance,
nor gamble, nor swear; they are all fools," said he.
While he uttered these words, the thought struck me,
" That is the people I have for years longed to see,"
and at the same time I made up my mind to go and
see them.

Early in the morning of the 2d of May, 1839, after
a safe passage to Cincinnati, I left the boat, and soon
found an acquaintance from my native place, who had
emigrated some years before me. At breakfast it was
arranged that I should board with them ; and when
the husband had gone to his shop, his wife soon turned
the conversation on religious subjects. She spoke of
the wonderful dealings of God with them in this coun-

WILLIAM AHRENS. 113

try, how he had shown them a better way to heaven
than we had ever known in Germany, how happy
they were in pursuing this way, and so on. I listened
with astonishment, having known her course in Ger-
many very well, and wondered greatly at the change
of which she spoke, and which all her actions seemed
to confirm, believing and thanking God at the same
time, in my heart, that he had heard my prayer about
bringing me to his people. After a while she said
that they had left the Lutheran Church and joined a
Church called the Methodist. A thunder-clap from a
clear sky could not have astonished me more than
hearing these words ; what I a few moments ago be-
lieved to be an answer of my prayer, I now believed
to be a punishment of God, who, for my breaking all
my most solemn vows, had led me into the hands of
the most dangerous enemies of Christ, in order to de-
liver me the more surely into the hands of the devil.
In great anxiety I hastened out of the house, taking
my friend who had come from New Orleans with me.
When we got into the open air I said to him, " Henry,
we have fallen into evil hands; what shall we do?"
*' What do you mean ?" said he. " Why, can't you
see ? these people have denied the faith and gone over
to Antichrist ; they belong to that strange sort of
people which the Bible designates the ' harlot of Baby-
lon,' with her mysterious cup of sorceries, possessing
a supernatural power to fascinate men and deliver
them over to the devil ; and how shall we escape such
a power except we leave them immediately?" But
my friend Henry told me that he did n't care any
thing about it, neither was he at all afraid of them.
A stranger, I wandered about the streets ; but being

10 ^

114 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

unable to find a suitable boarding-place, I was com-
pelled to return. The next day a man entered the
house, whom my suspicious mind set down as one of
them; I watched every word and movement, but could
not detect any thing wrong. Just as he was about to
leave he stepped up to me, spoke a few kind words,
and then briefly stated, in the plainest style, that the
sinner was saved by grace, that the greatest sinner
could be saved, and that it was possible for every one
to know that God had forgiven his si72S, and that he
was an heir of heaven. If an angel had come down
from heaven and told me the same words, I could not
have been more convinced that this was the true Gos-
pel than I was then, and at the same moment I
resolved in my heart that if it was possible yet for me
to get such assurance, I would not rest till I had it,
let it cost what it would. He then told me how to
read the Bible, and how to pray, and then bade me
" good-by." This messenger of peace was the Rev.
Peter Schmucker, German missionary of the Meth-
odist Episcopal Church.

With this key, "saved It/ grace" I commenced to
read the Bible, and the more I read the more I won-
dered how I could have read and heard that a thou-^
sand times and not have understood it. But with the
increase of light my sins swelled to an immeasurable
number and size ; even what I had considered innocent
pleasures, I saw to be great abominations before the
Lord. Nothing pained me more than to see how I
had trampled under foot the love and mercy of God;
to reflect on his goodness bestowed upon me and my
ungratefulness made my heart almost break. Gladly
would I have given a thousand lives if I had had them

WILLIAM AHRENS. 115

in my possession, if with it I could have undone mj
ungratefulness. For three months I made use of
every public opportunity "vvhen mourners were invited
to the altar of prayer ; but my sins, appearing to me to
be greater than the price that was paid for them, I
was hindered from believing and being saved. And
if I had not received such clear witness of my ov/n
redemption I would up to this day doubt its possi-
bility.

Having heard of the wonders of redeeming grace
at camp meetings, I longed for the day of its com-
mencement, and when it arrived I hastened with
others to attend it; but I had to lie down for the
first night with the load of sin upon me as heavy as
ever. Next morning, after sermon, when the mourn-
ers were invited to come forward, my soul was tossed
between hope and fear. Soon I found myself in a
fearful struggle ; my sins appearing now in such fear-
ful colors as I had never seen them before; heavier
and heavier grew their weight upon me, and still it
increased ; and with it the agony of my soul, for the
light from the mercy-seat decreased in the same
degree till the last ray of hope was gone. By this
time my voice was gone, and my physical strength
was leaving me also, till body and soul sank down in
despair. Now I beheld a horrible picture. I hung
over the brink of the unmeasurable depth of the
bottomless pit filled with darkness, while the flames
of hell and damnation licked my soul. I felt myself
a condemned sinner. At the same time my heart tes-
tified that God was perfectly good and righteous, and
the only and last wish I had was that I might declare
his goodness and righteousness to devils and men in

116 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

hell. I then felt my strength revived some, but soon
and suddenly the thought crossed my mind, you have
been deceived by the Methodists ; they are nothing
but seducers, and their work is to deliver souls over
to the devil. This brought on another struggle,
which led me to examine myself for what I was
there — and if I ever examined myself honestly surely
I did it then. The result of it was, "I do not
wish any thing but the favor of God and the forgive-
ness of my sins, if it is at all possible to get it; and,
if he should grant it, I will be his own in body, soul,
and all that I have for time and eternity, cost what
it will ; if he will receive me then no tribulation, nor
life, nor death shall separate me from him ; whatever
he may require of me that will I do — his will shall be
my rule, his glory the object in all my undertakings,
and, as to the Methodists, I never have joined them,
and I never will do it." Hereupon I had a clear wit-
ness in my conscience that my intention Avas without
guile, and that as long as this was the case God would
not suffer me to fall a prey to the devil. This witnes%^
brought again a ray of hope that God might accept the
offer and give me the forgiveness of my sins. Then
the Spirit of God helped my infirmities ; by degrees I
was enabled to behold the love of Christ to a ruined
world, and as I felt myself to be one of the lost sin-
ners, so I felt myself to be also an object of his love,
and by the grace of God I was soon enabled to be-
lieve, without a doubt, he hath loved me and has given
himself for me. And . after my heart seemed to be
emptied of all its wickedness a stream of life, and
power, and glory was flowing into it — the love of
God was shed abroad in my heart by the Holy

WILLIAM AHRENS. 117

Ghost — the Spirit of God bearing witness with my
spirit that I was a child of God. With wondering
and delight I beheld a real change in every thing that
surrounded me. There was glory above me, and glor}^
beneath me, and glory around me, and glory in my
soul. This was on the 17th of August, 1839.

Soon after my conversion I found that I had done
wrong in resolving never to join the Methodist
Church ; but having solemnly promised the Lord " to
do whatever he might require of me," and he having
joined my heart to the Methodists in the act of my
conversion, and showed me now plainly that it was
my duty to connect myself with them in name, I
did so.

That solemn vow, " to be the Lord's forever, and to
do whatever he might require of me," has been a
powerful bond upon me till this day, and by it I have
been drawn along paths which, in all probability, I
would not have trod without it. It has caused me
to obey the call of the Church to preach the Gospel
as a missionary and traveling preacher of the Meth-
odist Episcopal Church ; for, though I had a " burn-
ing after souls " from the moment of my adoption, I
never had a special call to the ministry as I heard
others have. When the brethren had argued away
all my reason against that call I cast myself with
childlike simplicity into the arms of everlasting mercy,
praying God that if the brethren were acting con-
trary to his will, and if I should do wrong in ac-
cepting this call, that he, should overrule the whole to
his own glory, not doubting that he would do it.

My first license to preach I received on the 20th of
October, 1841, signed by Richard Corwin and P.'

118 GEEMAN MISSIONARIES.

Schmucker. In the fall of 1842 I was received on
probation in the Kentucky conference, held in Louis-
ville, Kentucky, and there I received my appoint-
ment for the same place. The mission had been be-
gun by Rev. P. Schmucker two years before, and was
made a self-supporting station at the same confer-
ence. Our society in Louisville, therefore, has the
honor of being the first in the whole missionary work
among the German population that was stricken out
from the list of missions ; and I think it an honor to
be the first German itinerant preacher of our Church
who was sent out without any support from the mis-
sionary treasury.

Since the day of my conversion I have felt the
conviction that next to God I owe the Methodist
Episcopal Church a debt that I never can pay ; but
I resolved then to labor for her welfare with all of
my abilities. This resolution I have so far carried
out, and I find it in my heart as fresh as ever.

As to the fulfilling of my vows I need not say any
thing; but since I made them the glory of God my
Redeemer has been my chief object, and to do good
among my fellow-men has been my chief delight, and
my hope of everlasting life rests solely on the merits
of my Redeemer. To him be glory notv and forever,

amen

ENGELnAEDT R I E M E NS C H N E I D E R. 119

CHAPTER VII.

ENGELHARDT RIE ME N S C H N E I D E R .

I WAS born in 1815, in Kurhessen, Germany, and
brought up according to the strict forms of the Re-
formed Church. My parents spared no pains to give
me good instruction; but I was a stranger to the
grace of God, and can recollect no time, although I
was twenty years old when I left Germany, in which
I felt any special concern for the salvation of my soul.
Now, removed from the house of my parents, and de •
prived of the exhortations of my affectionate mother,
I tore myself loose from all restraints and drank
iniquity like water. Had it not been for the grace of
God, I know not where my course would have ended.
The first time my heart was affected was under a ser-
mon from these words: "If these should hold their
peace the stones would cry out." At the conclusion of
the sermon I felt that I must amend my ways or be
eternally lost. I made this known afterward to one
of my friends; who, in a rationalistic manner, said
" the priests always make it worse than it is ;" and
he and others of my friends succeeded in quieting my
fears again, and I continued for some time longer to
live undisturbed in sin. The second time I was
awakened to see my condition was in a tavern, where
I and several young friends, on a Sabbath evening,
were together drinking wine. As I stood at the bar

120 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

and reflected upon our conduct, I came to a clear con-
viction that we were on our way to ruin, and the more
I thought of it the more dreadful the place appeared
to me. The sins of my whole life appeared in dread-
ful array before me, and the tears rolled from my
eyes. I took one of my friends with me and went
into a retired place, where I wept all night, and con-
fessed my sins as if my friend were a priest. My
friend, who knew as little of true religion as myself,
comforted me, and said that those things of which I
spoke were no sins at all; and in this way he
sought to ease my heart with false comfort. If in
that night a religious man had been with me who
could have directed me to the Lamb of God, I might
have been converted immediately. But, by indulg-
ence in sin, these feelings passed away again, and I
fell into a deep spiritual slumber, and became more
ungodly than I had previously been. the wonder-
ful mercy of God that kept me from falling into a
state of final impenitence !

I became so impatient under restraints that I was
no longer content to remain in America, and therefore
resolved to go to one of the seaport cities with a view
of making arrangements to return to Europe, where I
had something of my inheritance coming to me. The
greatest difficulty in my way was that I was not
allowed to violate the Sabbath here as I had been
accustomed to in Germany, in playing, dancing, and
frolicking.

I Avent to Pittsburg to visit my uncle before starting
to Germany, and here I engaged to work for a short
time. About this time Mr. Nast, from Cincinnati,
made a visit to Pittsburg and preached to the Ger-

ENGELHAKDT RIEMENSCHNEIDER. 121

mans. The school-house in which he preached was
near the house in which I worked; and, although I
thought nothing of the Methodists, yet as the preach-
ing was in German, I concluded to go and hear him.
The first sermon that I heard went like a two-edged
sword through my soul, and I again felt myself a
great sinner. In this call I received a strong im-
pression that this might be the last, and I went home
with a determination to give myself to God. I now,
for the first time, commenced praying upon my knees.
Sleep departed from my eyes, and I spent whole nights
in wrestling with God in prayer. When I went to the
table to take food the impression came to me, " You
are not worthy of it," and so I often retired from the
table without my meal. With these feelings I con-
tinued to visit the Church. Brother Nast circulated
the "Articles of Faith and General Rules of the
Methodist Church," printed in the German language,
of which I took a copy and was thankful for it. I
read the General Rules with great attention, and con-
cluded if the Church kept these rules it must be a
pious one.

Upon the following evening, after the General Rules
were distributed, brother Nast said, "All those who
have read our General Rules and think they can get
along better by uniting with us in our society can
give us their names." I was convinced that this was
the place for me ; but I was anxious that some one
should lead the way, as there was then no German
Methodist society formed there; however, as none
went, I resolved to follow my convictions, and went
forward and gave my name to the Church, with the

determination fully to consecrate myself to the service
11

122 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

of God, whereupon about twenty folloAved ; and this
was the commencemeut of the Pittsburg mission.

Notwithstanding I had now given my name to the
Church, and saw myself as a sinner exposed to the
wrath of God, yet I had too much pride and fear
of man to allow me to go to the altar of prayer,
to which invitations were given from time to time, till
one Saturday evening, when brother Nast preached
from the subject of Naaman's leprosy. Under this
sermon I was so affected that I suddenly fell from the
bench and began to cry aloud to God for mercy. My
heart was so broken up with sorrow that I could not
contain myself. Brother Nast and others prayed for
me, and I became somewhat quieted, but did not find
peace. From this time I continued to cry for mercy
day and night for three weeks. Some of my former
friends said that the Methodists had put a bad spirit
into me ; others thought I was crazy, and as I was
daily growing thinner and paler, it was generally
thought that I would not live long. I felt my load of
sins so heavy that I continued to cry to the Lord not
to let me die till I had obtained peace and pardon, and
this I continued for three weeks, till one evening at a
prayer meeting I gave myself, as a poor lost, con-
demned sinner, to Christ, trusting alone in his merits.
It was then that the day of grace dawned in my heart.
The joy that I felt I could not describe, and the evi-
dence of my acceptance was so clear that no enemy
could make me doubt it.

Immediately after my conversion I felt a desire to
do something to advance the cause of God and to lead
sinners to the Savior. Yet I did not think of preach-
ing, notwithstanding that I felt inwardly moved to

ENGELHARDT R IE M E N SC HNEIDE R. 123

lead all men to Christ. I thought that none would
ever be allowed to preach who had not gone through
a regular course of theological study at a university.

I held on my way and endeavored to do all my du-
ties, and to grow in grace and in the knowledge of
our Lord Jesus Christ. After some time I was recom-
mended for license to exhort, and received it from
brother Kenney. I went to Wheeling to live, and on
one occasion, as brother Swahlen had to be absent
from Wheeling over Sunday, he left it with me to
speak to the people. But as I had never spoken be-
fore to a large assembly, I was full of fear and anx-
iety all the week. The enemy tempted me to decline
going, for fear of being put to shame. I, however,
resisted the temptation, and on Sabbath morning I
went to the Church Avith an anxious heart, and found
some literary and professional persons there. I arose
with trembling, and read the third chapter of the Gos-
pel of John, and then gave out a hymn, and sung and
prayed. After the prayer I felt such liberty and
such a freedom of spirit that I could have stood be-
fore princes to declare the word of God. I com-
menced to speak, and felt the power and unction from
on high upon me. I came to the conclusion that if
God wished me to declare his truth he could prepare
me for this great work, and I was determined to obey
his call.

After brother Swahlen had returned, he requested
me to go some twenty miles into the country, where
there was a number of Germans who had no preacher.
I went, and my first visit was crowned with the conver-
sion of five or six souls. This encouraged me, and I
afterward visited these people every two weeks, and

124

GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

each time remained eight days with them. The effect
was, that in four months about forty souls Avere con-
verted. Here I was delivered from all doubts in
reference to my call to the ministry. The quarterly
conference gave me license to preach, and a recom- i
mendation to the annual conference, where I was re-
ceived ; and I thank God that he has given me living
epistles of my ministry. I

Note. — Brother Riemenschncider is now laboring as one of oui
missionaries in Germany. His field of labor is Zurich, Switzerland.
The narrative here given of his religious experience was written
about ten years ago.

LUDWIGS. JACOB Y. ]2'

CHAPTER VIII.

EXPERIENCE OF LUDWIG S. JACOBY.

I NEVER belonged to those who doubted the exist-
ence of God, for the deep impressions made by the
admonitions of my pious mother could not be entirely
erased from my mind. I had the name of an evan-
gelical Lutheran in Germany, for so testifies my
certificate of baptism at least ; but I had no idea
of true Christianity, although a New Testament, which
had been presented to me, was my continual com-
panion. Some time before my conversion I frequently
read in it; but I often cast it from me, exclaiming,
" This can not possibly be true."

A year after my arrival in this country, and about
the beginning of November, 1839, I came to Cincin-
nati, where I still continued in my old habits. Every
Sabbath day I visited some Church ; I attended
worship sometimes in German, and sometimes in Eng-
lish, for I understood the latter tolerably well; but
I must confess that I usually went from Church as
I had gone there.

Of a German Methodist Church I had never heard.
One evening, however, a young man, to whom I gave
instruction in English, asked me if I would not go
with him to the German Methodist Church, on Sab-
bath evening, as it was a real theater — a place of
much amusement. At first I had no especial desire

126 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

to go ; but the follo^Ying Sabbath a number of young
persons came to mj lodging, and urged me to go.
Brother Breunig, at that time a local preacher, made
his first attempt to preach or; that evening. His text
was the parable of the prodigal son. I could find
nothing to make sport of, excepting his singular ex-
pressions and pronunciation, he and I being from
different parts of Germany; and he had, of course,
peculiar provincialisms. His preaching Avas, to me,
a novelty, as I never had had an idea that a plain, un-
educated man would attempt so great an undertaking.
I would have been glad to go to prayer meeting on
the following Thursday evening : I had an especial
anxiety to go ; but could not find time, as I was then
giving lessons in the evening. The following Sabbath
evening I was one of the first in the Church, and
took my seat not far from the pulpit. Brother Nast
preached from, " I am not ashamed of the Gospel of
Christ." Satan suggested to me that I should look
right earnestly at him, to see if I could not make him
laugh. I did so ; and instead of making him laugh,
became myself an attentive hearer. Among other
remarks he made the following : " There may be a
Saul among us, whom God will convert into a Paul,"
which struck me, and went to my heart. Hitherto
I had been immersed in the vices of the Avorld; but
now I was brought to reflection. On the following
Tuesday evening I went to class meeting. The union
and love which I there found among the people, and
the happiness which appeared impressed on every
countenance, made me feel solitary and forsaken ; and
I stood absorbed in reflection, till an aged sister
asked me why I appeared so sorrowful. I could find

LUDWIG S. J AGO BY. 127

no peace nor comfort at home, and felt very unhappy
wherever I was. On the following Thursday evening
I attended prayer meeting; but my knees refused to
bend, till one of the brethren prayed that God
would grant that sinners might bend their stubborn
knees before it should be too late.

On Friday I was invited to the house of our dear
brother Nast : I soon obtained such confidence in him
that I opened to him the state of my mind. He
directed me to the Lamb of God that taketh away the
sins of the world ; and. after he had given me a most
kind exhortation, we bowed our knees together before
a throne of grace, and he offered up a fervent prayer
to God for me. After which I, for the first time,
raised my voice in earnest prayer to God for the
pardon of my sins. I then left brother Nast, with
the firm resolution that henceforth I would forsake
the Avorld, and wholly devote myself to God. At
home, I cast myself down to pray in the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ; but as I had pronounced this
name, a voice within spoke to me, "Thou hypocrite,
how canst thou pray in the name of Him on whom
thou dost not believe?" but I did not suffer myself
to be disturbed. It soon, however, appeared to me
as if the room was filled with people charging me
with hypocrisy; yet I continued, and from that mo-
ment I could pray with confidence in the name of
Jesus, because through his name alone we can be
saved.

I now commenced tearing myself loose from my
former associates; and, at the first opportunity, on
Monday before Christmas, 1839, I joined the Church
during love-feast. As those were called to approach

T28 GERMAN MISSIONARIES. .

the altar who wished an interest in the prayers of
the pious, I did not confer with flesh and blood, and
for eight evenings went thither. Twelve days I
sought the Lord earnestly, and attended the watch-
night. The new year was commenced with prayer,
and the children of God sang the songs of Zion, and
were filled with joy. I remained in prayer on my
knees. I thought that my heart would break under
the burden that lay upon me. I sighed for deliver-
ance; and, blessed be God! not in vain. The Lord
visited me, and I was blessed with peace and joy in
the Holy Ghost. I rose from my knees rejoicing,
and embraced heartily my, till then almost unknown,
brethren, and joyfully declared that the Lord had
delivered me. Never shall I forget that hour, neither
here on earth nor in heaven. The Lord Jesus showed
his mercy to a great sinner, and his grace was the
more magnified. I had a happy New-Year's day.
In the afternoon, however, the former friend who first
took me to the Methodist church, came to see me; he
mocked, and scoffed, and called me strange names.
I sought to quiet him by giving him an account of
my conversion; but he only became the more abusive,
and was actually about attempting to beat me. I
thereupon said to him, quite composedly, " If you
had treated me so before I was converted I would
have put you out of doors ; but now I will rather go
myself." So I went away sadly, and I understood he
quit my house in a rage. This circumstance made
me dejected, and in the evening I went anew to the
mourners' bench. Brother Nast asked me if I had
not professed to have found the Savior? I told him
I had, and related to him the reason of my mourning.

LUDWIG S. JACOB Y. 129

He exhorted me to earnest prayer; and soon I found
the joy which I had experienced return to my heart.

Now a new period in my life commenced. My
delight in the things of this world had come to an
end ; and it was my greatest joy to be united with the
children of God. Our dear father Schmucker at the
time alluded to had charge of the society ; and to
him, as well as to brother Nast, under God, I owe
many thanks for the encouragement they gave me to
go on in the service of the Lord. They took me by
the hand and led me as parents lead a child when it
first attempts to walk. I ought to remark that
brother Nast, in my first visit to him, lent me Fletch-
er's Appeal. This book contributed much to con-
vince me of my lost estate ; and after my conversion
it was of great advantage to me in my growth in
grace.

From the first moment of my conversion I felt a
great desire to communicate to my countrymen my
own happiness, and the power of God, as exhibited in
the Gospel. But I was yet weak myself. I there-
fore sought to strengthen myself by the word of God
and the reading of other religious books, but more espe-
cially in the exercise of prayer. I can honestly say,
that the first three months after my conversion were
the happiest in my life. I did not leave my room —
which was in the upper story of the Methodist Book
Concern — except to attend Church. The Lord blessed
me, and I grew in the knowledge of things divine.
One evening brother Schmucker took me into the
pulpit to exhort after him. I knew but little of what
he preached, for my Avhole frame trembled, and I
could scarcely collect myself for prayer; yet when

130 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

he closed I arose in the name of tlic Lord, and words
were given me to speak to the congregation. I re-
ceived license to exhort, and commenced my labors,
trusting in the Lord. I especially visited the work-
men on the canal; but, alas! saw but little fruit.
Yet I confided in my Savior, whose Spirit moved me
to proclaim his holy Gospel. And I am convinced
that the seed which, by the grace of God, I scattered
in weakness at my appointments — of which I filled
one nearly every Sabbath — has not remained entirely
without fruit.

In the month of March, 1841, Rev. George C. Light,
a preacher of the Missouri conference, came to Cin-
cinnati and talked to brother Nast about the necessity
of sending a German missionary to St. Louis, and
expressed the desire of the English brethren to have
one there. Brother Nast and brother Light went to
Bishop Morris, who was then in Cincinnati, and con-
sulted him on this subject. And in a few days after
the Bishop sent for me, and asked whether I was
willing to go to St. Louis as a missionary. Up to
this time I had preached nearly every Sunday, but my
theological knowledge was limited. I told the Bishop
of my deficiency in this respect, and that I was too
feeble to take such an important charge, and there-
fore would prefer at least to remain another year in
my present relation. At the same time I was will-
ing to devote myself wholly to the Lord, and would
submit the whole matter to the judgment of my
brethren. The Bishop encouraged me, and explained
to me how the preachers were trained in the Meth-
odist Church ; and told me to keep myself in readi-
ness to start as soon as brother Nast returned from

LUDWIG S. JACOBY. 131

tlie east, during wliich time I was engaged to edit the
Apologist. Brother Nast returned in the middle of
July, and toward the end of the month I with my
wife, and a little daughter five weeks old, set out in the
name of the Lord for St. Louis, where we arrived on
the first of August, 1841.

Brother Wesley Browning, Avho was then stationed
preacher there, Avith his pious and kind lady, now in
heaven, received us with much kindness, so that we
did not feel as strangers in a strange city. St. Louis
was at that time a wicked place, and the Germans dis-
tinguished themselves especially by profaning the
Sabbath. There was one German Church there that
had an orthodox preacher, but this was all that could
be said ab'out it, for there was nothing known of prac-
tical Christianity. I found in connection with the
English Methodist Church brother Hoffman, who had
been converted by reading "Arndt's True Chris-
tianity ;" but he was not acquainted with the English
language sufiiciently to be instructed in religion by
the preaching. Our joy was great to find one with
whom we could converse in our own tongue about
the love of God, and one too Avho understood the lan-
guage of Canaan well. I sought as soon as possible
to arrange my household affairs, which I accom-
plished in two days. Then I rented a small church
from the Presbyterians.

Brother Hoffman and 1 went through the city with
tracts, and invited the people to come to our meeting.
The following Sabbath morning, after I had committed
the Avhole work in earnest prayer to God, we went to
the church. It was ten o'clock, and no one there yet,
and our service was aj^pointed to commence at half-

132 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

past ten o'clock. My wife remarked, sadly, "You
■will have to preach to us and to the empty benches
to-day." With that I commenced to ring the bell
of our chapel, and gradually the people came in till
the house was full. The Lord gave me grace to
declare his word; and, after I had invited them earn-
estly to come again in the evening, we went home
joyfully, thanking God for his goodness. In the
evening the house was not only filled with attentive
hearers, but the whole yard around the church was
filled with people. I gave out a meeting for singing, a
prayer meeting, and an appointment to preach for the
following week. The people came, and I labored on
joyfully. I soon became acquainted with another
German family residing eight miles from the city,
who also belonged to the English Church, and I
preached once a week at their house.

In the mean time I commenced to preach in the
market-house on Sunday afternoon, in the south part
of the city. The German paper warned me not to do
this, or means would be sought to prevent me. Yet
I proceeded in the name of the Lord to declare his
word. On the following Sabbath a large congrega-
tion was assembled, and after I had mounted the
butcher's block, and was just commencing my ser-
mon, I was violently pushed down, and some had
commenced to strike me, and to talk against me. I
sought to quiet them, but all to no purpose. What
would have been the result I know not, but the Lord
sent me a deliverer. An American took me by the
collar of my coat and led me out through the enraged
German crowd, and brought me to the house of an
English brother. The police took the matter in hand,

I

LUDWIG S. JACOB Y. 133

m

and two of the ringleaders were fined. At the same
time some of my hearers sought to disturb me in the
church.

I adopted measures to control these disturbers of
the peace and to keep them in order. I applied to
the Mayor to send some of the watchmen to my as-
sistance, which he willingly did. I would remark
here, that one of these watchmen, who was a Ger-
man, was converted to God in the following year.

In September I went to the conference, where I
was ordained deacon. During my absence my wife
kept up the prayer meetings. This year brother
John Swahlen was sent to Pinkney mission, Mis-
souri, and brother John Hartman to Belleville, Illinois.
When I returned from the conference I continued to
preach and hold prayer meetings, and soon a number
became awakened, and commenced regarding them-
selves as members of my charge, notwithstanding I
had not called on any of them to join our Church,
and I did not wish to invite them to join till they had
experienced conversion, for the people were very ig-
norant in reference to every thing concerning vital
godliness. I addressed a letter to father Schmucker,
and asked his advice what to do, that the people might
become converted. " Continue to preach, to exhort,
and to pray," was the answer.

There was a woman who had much influence among
the Germans, and constantly visited my meetings ;
went about among the people, and told them that
what I preached was the truth, but told those who
were awakened that they must not become Meth-
odists.

This induced me, on the 22d of November, 1841,

184 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

for the first time, to give an invitation to join the
Church, and twenty-two persons united Avith the
Church, after I had read the General Rules. On
the following Monday there came an old woman, one
of my members, to my house, and complained that her
burden was more than she could bear. My wife and
I prayed earnestly with her, and she soon obtained
peace and went home. On her way she was filled
with the joys of salvation, and hastened to the house
to tell her husband what it was to have the pardon of
sins. He was deeply awakened by this, and com-
menced earnestly to seek God, and soon found the
Savior, and went on his way rejoicing. Our aged
mother Klotts, the first-fruit of my labors, has ex-
changed earth for heaven.

I will here relate another occurrence. A woman
came to our house and requested us to pray for her ;
we prayed earnestly for her. She went home in a
rage, and told her husband that we had prayed for her
as if she had been a thief or a murderer. They both
withdrew, and became worse than ever. Now my
members became, one after another, converted to
God — some in their houses, some at their daily em-
ployment, and others at prayer meetings and under
preaching. The small society was united in love, and
my soul praised the Lord. How gracious was the
Lord to me at that time ! I was accustomed to study
my sermons on my knees, which custom I have kept
up ever since.

Notwithstanding my want of experience, the Lord
helped me, so that I seldom preached without feeling
the power of the Lord upon me. I had in those
times no very severe temptations^ yet the old Adam

LUDWIG S. JACOBY. 135

sometimes sought to gain a victory. Still, I lived in
close communion "with my Savior. When I went out
into the city I took a text with me, on which I fixed
my mind, and this kept my thoughts from wandering.
I distributed many tracts and Testaments and Bibles,
with Avhich I was abundantly supplied by the Tract
Society. What often grieved me was the opposition
I met with from my unconverted countrymen, to
which the newspapers contributed not a little. When
I passed by them they applied all kinds of opprobri-
ous epithets to me, and sometimes threw dirt at me,
but I rejoiced in the approbation of my Savior. On
Christmas, 1841, we held our first quarterly meeting.
I expected help from my brethren in the ministry, but
they had to attend to their own work at this time.
But the Lord helped me, and I preached, notwith-
standing my poor health, fourteen times in nine days.
The sacrament and love-feast was a time of refresh-
ing from the presence of the Lord. Many sinners
were awakened and converted in this memorable time.
My labors in the country were also not without fruit,
for there were a few souls converted there, and among
them three who had previously belonged to the Papist
Church.

On the 18th of March we had our first quarterly
conference ; Wesley Browning was presiding elder.
It was resolved to build a church. We then had forty
members. We procured a very suitable lot, 52 by
110 feet, which was then worth $1,400, for which we
had to pay $500, payable in ten years. Brother
Hartman visited us occasionally with some of his
members from the Belleville mission. Now came a
hard time for me ; the money had to be collected. I

136 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

received only small sums, and the building was con-
tracted for at $1,200. But the Lord helped, and
money was on hand in due time. After we had laid
the corner-stone, some of the wicked Germans got a
bottle of whisky and poured on it, and in this way
sought to make sport of us. But one of these, in
the following year, was converted to God. The build-
ing went on rapidly, and on the 7th of August I had
the pleasure of dedicating the church to the service
of the Most High. How happy did I feel then, in a
brick church 32 feet wide by 50 long, with a small
bell ! Our Sabbath school marched, at the ringing of
the bell, from the old church to the new one. And
this was now filled, for it was something strange that
the despised Methodists, of whom it had been prophe-
sied that they would soon come to an end, now had a
church of their own. I must mention that our Eng-
lish brother, Nathaniel Childs, helped us very much
in the building of this church. The Lord remember
him, and all who helped us, and bless them !

Note. — Brother Jacoby was the first missionary sent by the Meth-
odist Episcopal Church to Germany. He is now superintendent of
these missions.

C. H. DOERING. 137

CHAPTER IX.

EXPERIENCE OF C. H. DOERING.

I WAS born on the 27th of August, in 1811, in
Springe, a small town near the city of Hanover, king-
dom of Hanover, Germany; and, in my youth, had
every opportunity to obtain a liberal education, and
become a good scholar; but I contracted a passion
for reading novels and other light and pernicious
books. The reading of these not only diminished my
zeal for study, but also greatly vitiated my morals.

I was often under the influence of serious impres-
sions, but more especially at the time of my confirma-
tion, which generally takes place in the fourteenth
year. At this time the baptismal vow is renewed, and
the sacrament of the Lord's supper is received, and
the participants are considered members of the
Church. This is the usage of the Lutheran Church,
in which I was brought up. I have no doubt, if I had
had at that time a true spiritual guide to lead me to
the feet of Jesus, I would have remembered my
Creator in the days of my youth, and would have
given my heart to the Savior, and experienced his
renewing grace. I received religious instruction from
my eighth to my fourteenth year, in the school, but I
do not recollect that ever the necessity of regenera-
tion, and the mode of obtaining it, was explained to
us. Although the Lutheran Church in that part of

12

138 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

the country had the form of godliness, the power
thereof I never saw manifested in it. There may
be, however, many individual cases of true piety which
never came under my personal observation. Pamily
devotion and social prayer meetings I never met with
nor heard of. The whole of our religious worship Avas
performed on the Sabbath, and this only during a few
hours. The greatest part of the day was spent in pub-
lic amusements, playing cards, dancing, visiting thea-
ters, etc.; and these amusements were participated in
even by our clergymen.

Being from childhood somewhat religiously inclined,
I had some idea of devoting myself to the ministry,
which in our country is chosen either by the child or
parent like any other occupation, without any regard
to a divine call from the Head of the Church ; but,
being without the means to go through the required
collegiate and theological course, which extends from
six to eight years and sometimes longer, I entered
upon mercantile pursuits. I was apprenticed for five
years, and during this time, in comparison with many
other young men in my situation, was leading a re-
tired and outwardly moral life, though my former
serious impressions had vanished away. Having fin-
ished my apprenticeship, I served as clerk one year
in Bremen and three years in Gottingen. During the
period of nearly ten years I did not visit the house of
God more than a few dozen times, and only once par-
took of the holy sacrament. To the best of my rec-
ollection during this time I did not once open my
Bible, deeming it sufficient to have it among my books.
In my twenty-second or twenty-third year I was much
given to despondency, and was often tempted to self-

C- H, DOEEING. 139

destruction, but never a single thought entered my
mind with regard to my future fate. How, in the
easiest way, to get rid of my life, -which was a burden
to me, was all that occupied my thoughts on this sub-
ject. This state of mind was chiefly produced by
looking too far into the future, and always meditating
how to get through the world, having no means
myself. But the mercy of God spared me, not per-
mitting Satan to tempt me farther, but only to sug-
gest these wicked thoughts. It is now with deep re-
gret and mortification that I look back upon the years
of my youth, but they are gone forever.

During my stay in Bremen I heard a great deal
about the United States of America, and of many
who had gone there ; this created a like desire within
me ; and, in order to prepare myself for such an
event, I began to study the English language, which
study I pursued for several years. My desire to em-
igrate to this country became stronger and stronger.
I communicated it to my mother, but could not obtain
her consent. Others of my friends dissuaded me
from taking such a step, especially my former teacher;
and among the reasons which he advanced was this,
that there was not the least spark of religion in
America — the people caring for nothing except to
make money. But all efforts to deter me from my
purpose were vain ; I was determined to go — to leave
home, friends, all, for an unknown land. I left an
aged mother, she not knowing my real design; and,
after a long but prosperous voyage of fifty-one days,
I arrived, in the middle of September, 1836, at the
city of Baltimore. Here I met with some acquaint-
ances from the old country, with whom I staid about

140 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

a week, looking for employment, but I found none
wliich suited me. During my stay one of my ac-
quaintances wanted to show me a great curiosity, and
this was a colored Methodist meeting. I went, but
hearing a dreadful noise in the house, I was afraid to
venture in, and stood before the door and wondered
at this strange phenomenon, that was strange to mc
at that time. From Baltimore I went to Wheeling,
Virginia, intending from thence to go to Dayton,
Ohio, where I was recommended to a young man en-
gaged in mercantile business.

On my arrival in Wheeling I was met by a country-
woman of mine, who persuaded me to stay there. Af-
ter a few days I found employment as clerk in a dry
goods store, with an English brother, James M.
Wheat, a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church,
who treated me very kindly, although an entire
stranger to him. Having my boarding in his own
family, I was invited to attend family worship. He
read, sung, and then they kneeled down for prayer.
This was all new to me; I never before had witnessed
a family worship. Their kneeling down was against
my feelings. I hesitated a few moments, not know-
ing what to do, whether to kneel down with them
or not ; but reflecting that it could do me no harm I
kneeled down and continued to do so afterward. A
few days subsequently, when I was unpacking my
books, my employer perceived a Bible among them ;
he expressed his gratification to see it, having thought
that I, perhaps, belonged to the Roman Catholic
Church ; at this I was highly offended, and asked him
whether he thought I was a heathen, in supposing I
had no Bible. However, I was one in reality, having

C. H. DOERING. 141

only the name of a Christian, since I had not read my
Bible, as remarked before, for the space of at least
ten years, although carrying it constantly with me.
I relied upon this, upon my baptism, my confirma-
tion, and the leading of an outward moral life for my
salvation.

For the purpose of improving my knowledge of
the English I began to visit the English Methodist
Church, which was at that time under the pastoral
charge of Rev. Wesley Browning. Through the in-
fluence of the Holy Spirit my eyes were gradually
opened. I began to feel my sins, to become aware
of my lost condition, and made the determination to
begin to seek the Lord. Invitations for penitents to
kneel at the mourners' bench were given from time
to time, but this was again entirely new to me, and
at first I did not know what to make of it. I
felt, however, that this was the very place to which
I should go. Shame and fear for a long time kept
me from taking this decisive step, and I put it ofi"
from day to day. By the help of the Lord I soon
began to perceive the stratagem of the enemy of my
soul; and I felt that in this way, by putting it off,
I never would be reconciled to God. At length, with
a broken heart and a trembling step, I hastened to
the altar of prayer to seek the Lord. Divine light
from on high broke in upon me ; I began earnestly to
pray, and the pardoning love of God began to fill my
bosom. I felt thankful to the Lord for what he had
done for me. I now saw his wise purpose in guiding
my wandering feet to this country to save my soul
from eternal destruction.

A love for the souls of my fellow-men now entered

142 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

my bosom ; with compassion I looked upon the thou-
sands of my countrymen who were in the same con-
dition as myself. The desire^to devote myself to the
service of the Lord took hold upon me, and it became
stronger and stronger. But thinking myself incom-
petent for such a work, I thought it best, as a pre-
paratory step for entering the vineyard of the Lord,
to obtain a further collegiate education. About this
time, 1838, there was only one German mission, and
this in Cincinnati, and no German Methodists yet
in Wheeling ; but I had heard of brother Nast and
of the intended project to edit a German paper. To
him I wrote, introducing myself to his acquaintance,
and informing him at the same time of my intention.
I was recommended by brother Browning, from whom
and his sainted companion I received all kindness,
to Alleghany College, Meadville, to Avhich I proceeded,
and where I remained in the pursuit of my studies
three years and a half. During this time the Ger-
man missions began rapidly to spread, and I received
several times very urgent letters from brother Nast
to enter the active work; but, counseled by my friends
and Bishop Soule, who Avas at that time on a visit in
Meadville, I continued till I had finished my course.
In the year 1840 I received license as exhorter ;
and in the last year of my stay in the College, I
began to preach to the Germans in Meadville and its
vicinity before large and attentive congregations.
This was to me a great assistance as a preparation to
enter the active work in the ministry. To the Presi-
dent of the College at that time. Rev. H. J. Clark,
and the other professors connected with it, I shall feel
myself always under the greatest obligations for their

C. H. DOERING. 143

kindness and Christian fellowship manifested toward
me. The time spent there was one of the most
pleasant portions of my life, and I hope it was not
unprofitablj spent.

In the year 1841 I was received on trial in the
Pittsburg conference, and by Bishop Roberts imme-
diately transferred to New York conference, to begin
the mission in the city of New York among the Ger-
mans. A small band of eight brethren and sisters
converted in the English Churches cast in their lot
with me, and we began in the fear of our God our
labors among our countrymen. We met with many
obstacles and discouragements, had to contend with
prejudices, superstition, and infidelity every-where;
but in answer to our prayers, by the help of God, our
prospects became brighter, and our little frame meet-
ing-house was soon filled with attentive hearers, souls
were awakened and converted to God, and in the
course of six months about fifty-seven joined our
mission, of whom many were converted to God. At
the end of this period brother Lyon, who had before
labored among the English, came to our help and
took charge of the mission. The want of a church
was now greatly felt, and after much inquiry and
labor we obtained a suitable lot in Second-street, on
which the present church is built.

Having labored sixteen months in the city of New
York, I was transferred again by Bishop Waugh to
Pittsburg conference, to take charge of the German
mission in Pittsburg, which was without a pastor.
Owing to different circumstances this mission was
brought near the verge of ruin, and the members
thereof about to scatter. But they Avcre gathered

144 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

again, ar.d we had a precious revival the first winter.
Here, also, a house of worship was needed, and in
the year 1844 one was built. By Bishop Soule I was
ordained deacon in the year 1843, at the conference
held in Elizabethtown, Virginia. I labored from Jan-
uary, 1843, to September, 1844, in this mission, was
then again transferred to the Ohio conference, ordain-
ed in September, 1844, an elder by Bishop Waugh,
and by him appointed presiding elder to take charge
of the Pittsburg German Mission district, which
embraced Pittsburg, Wheeling, Captina, Marietta,
Chester, Defiance, Canal Dover, and North Ohio. The
amount of traveling on this district was about four
thousand miles a year. Other missions were the next
year added to it, and it extended from Pittsburg down
to Maysville, Kentucky, including nine appointments.
On this district I labored four years, and during this
time many souls in our quarterly meetings were con-
verted to God. Although years of toil and nearly
constant traveling, being separated from family and
home months at a time, they were happy years to me.
At the present time I feel yet an earnest desire to
devote myself to the service of my God, and to labor
for the welfare of my countrymen, of whom hundreds
and thousands of them are yearly emigrating to
America. In looking back upon the beginning of
the German work, and viewing its present extent, I
have to exclaim, " The Lord has done great things for
us." But viewing the large field spread before us,
and much of it already white for the harvest, casting
my eyes beyond the deep ocean where lies our native
home, and where now also the blossoms of civil and
religious liberty are beginning to bud, I can but think

C. n. DOE RING. 145

what the Lord has already done for us is only the
beginning of a work still greater. May the Lord
keep us, his unworthy servants, who are now engaged
in this glorious cause, faithful for this our holy call-
ing ! Amen.

Note. — Brother Doering has hecn laboring as a missionary of the
Methodist Episcopal Church in Germany for a number of years past.
He occupies a very important position, and is exerting a favorable
influence in spreading Scriptural holiness over the father-land. The
above sketch of his experience was written ten years ago, previous
to his going to Europe.

13

146 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

CHAPTER X.

EXPERIENCE OF G. L. MULPINGER.

I WAS born in Menzenlieim, at Wuertzburg, in the
kingdom of Bavaria, Germany. My parents belonged
to the Lutheran Church. I was consequently brought
up and instructed in all the religious ceremonies and
usages of this Church ; and besides my regular school
instruction, my parents took some pains to advance
me in some other branches of science. As I had a
great fondness for books, it was the wish of my
mother that I should become a student — that is, go
through the regular course at a university. But as
my father could not well spare me, and also lacked
the means to support me as a student, after my con-
firmation I went to work with my father at his busi-
ness, which was farming and oil-pressing. Religious
impressions were strong on my mind in my youth, to
which my mother contributed much. She led a pious
life, and often admonished me and prayed with me.
I was taught to respect and highly to esteem the min-
isters, especially in view of their power to absolve
and to bind, and, as the representatives of Christ, to
forgive sins. These doctrines I was taught in a Lu-
theran catechism. Furthermore, I was taught to be-
lieve that baptism was regeneration; but that, as I
had not kept my baptismal vow from my childhood, I
must renew this vow at my confirmation. The

G. L. MULFINGER. 147

preacher laid his hands upon my head — according
to custom in confirmation — and then, for the first
time, I received the true body and blood of Christ in
the sacrament — as many Lutherans in Germany still
hold these views — as the seal that I was now a true
Christian.

As I then heard nothing of the new birth and a
change of heart and life, I, alas ! with others, stood
still at the outward form of religion, and continued to
live as much in sin as before, and even more so, be-
cause I frequently saw our preacher, in company with
others on Sabbath afternoon, sitting by his glass of
wine regaling himself, and enjoying the pleasures of
this life.

I had a great desire for books, and took delight in
reading. I read much in my Bible, through which I
was more and more convinced, that in the condition
in which I then was, notwithstanding my confirmation
and absolution, I was not prepared for heaven. This
brought me to deep reflection, and caused me to doubt
the truth of the doctrine of our Church in reference
to the new birth, baptism, absolution, etc. Finally, I
came to the conclusion that either something more
must be wrought in us, that we might be better
enabled to walk in the way of God's commandments,
or that the largest portion of those with whom I was
acquainted could not be saved. For in the Bible I
had read, " To be carnally-minded is death," and,
" He that is born of God doth not commit sin ;" and
again, I saw by reading Galatians v, 19-21, that the
class of persons here described were expressly ex-
cluded from the kingdom of heaven. But many of
these sins were indulged in by preachers and people.

148 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

And now the solemn question would often force itself
upon me, Will God fulfill his threatenings and cast
off all those who continually violate his law? I did
not know that we might be delivered from sin, and, by
believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, might, through
divine grace, be enabled to walk in the way of his
commandments. Alas! I had no one to teach me
these doctrines. I Avas tempted to view our heavenly
Father as a hard master, "reaping where he had not
sown, and gathering where he had not strewed."
Such doubts so possessed my mind that, finally, I was
filled with enmity against all religion, and regarded
the Bible as the invention of priests and kings, Avho
agreed together to oppress the poor that they might
live in pleasure.

In 1834 my parents, to my great joy, emigrated to
this land of liberty, and settled in Hamilton, Butler
county, Ohio, where my mother, who appeared to
take great pleasure in the discharge of her religious
duties, died — as I trust — in the Lord. Her death
again made some impression upon my mind, especially
as, only a short time before her departure, she earn-
estly exhorted me to read my Bible diligently, and to
put my confidence in God ; and with her last breath
she prayed for her children. From the time of her
death my mind was often disturbed, and the thought
of what should become of me if the Bible were true
often made me tremble. I strove to get rid of this
impression, by spending what time I could spare from
my regular employment in reading such books as said
nothing about religion. But still the question would
force itself upon me. How will it be should the Bible
after all prove to be true ? and the solemn response

G. L. MUL FINGER. 149

came every time, " Then you will be lost forever."
These thoughts brought such a gloom upon my mind
that I often Avished I had never been born. After I
had lived some time in Cincinnati, Ohio, I went to
La-\vrenccburg, Indiana. In the years 1837 and '38,
my mind became so gloomy that I lost all relish for
society and took no interest in the pleasures of youth,
and I was regarded by many as singular. My dis-
tress of mind was so great that I often thought of
laying violent hands upon myself.

I had often heard of the writings of Voltaire and
Paine, and expected much from these writers in ref-
erence to their arguments against the Bible. In the
year 1838 I found an opportunity to read these
works. But to my great astonishment, instead of find-
ing solid arguments against the Bible, I only found
nothing but scurrilous wit. Instead of finding in the
place of the demolished altars of the religion of the Bi-
ble a beautiful structure of reason and virtue, I found
nothing but gloom and solitude; instead of solid
arguments to overthrow the truths of the Bible, I
found vain mockings, and saw that a blind hatred
against the truth was the main-spring of these writers,
and that they had not even themselves studied the
Bible. I cast away these works with great disgust;
for, instead of being confirmed in my unbelief, as I
had expected, I was only the more convinced that
the Bible was true. The fabric of my skepticism was
shaken to the very foundation, and I felt myself in-
expressibly miserable, so that I often spent whole
nights without sleeping, and in these melancholy
moods would think of the happy days of my child-
hood, when by the side of my devoted mother I was

150 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

taught to offer my prayers to God. But from me I
thought all these pleasures had forever fled. I
turned my attention to the Scriptures again, but
could find nothing but a sentence of condemnation
against me. I did not venture to acquaint any one
■with my condition, for three reasons : first, because I
was naturally diffident; secondly, I feared I should
be laughed at by my friends ; and, thirdly, I did not
know any one who I thought would understand my
condition. Yet I longed to find some one to whom
I might open my heart and who might advise and
comfort me. Several times I endeavored to pray,
but the enemy would always tell me, " God will not
hear you; it is vain for you to pray; thou hast denied
the Bible and committed the sin against the Holy
Ghost. Christ did not die for you." In this way
I spent a whole year, till God in mercy sent brother
Nast and brother Adam Miller to Lawrenceburg, in
the year 1839, in order there to preach to the neg-
lected Germans the Gospel of Christ. They preached
in town every two weeks, and proclaimed the joyful
tidings that Christ came to save all who would come
unto him without exception. For some time at first
I was prevented from attending the preaching, partly
on account of my business and partly from my preju-
dice against the name of Methodist. After some
time, through the influence of my brother, at whose
house brother Nast and brother Miller frequently
staid, I was induced to attend the preaching. 1
first heard brother Nast, and was convinced under
the first sermon that he preached the truth as I had
never heard before. On this occasion he gave an
invitation to join the Church, and I joined with a

G. L. MULFINGER. 151

full determination that if there was yet mercy for
such a poor sinner as I was, to seek, by the grace of
God, till I found it. I began to take courage and to
pray for the pardon of my sins, which appeared to lie
like mountains upon me. I endeavored to make my-
self better, but to my astonishment the disquietude
of my heart increased, while the enemy of my soul
constantly whispered to me, "You have committed
the sin against the Holy Ghost. You have doubted
God's word; there is no mercy for you."

About this time I left Lawrenceburg and moved to
Oxford, Butler county, Ohio, with my wife, who, with
me, had joined the Church. Here I attended the
English Methodist Church regularly, but my diffi-
dence prevented me from attending the class meet-
ings and prayer meetings as it was my duty to do.
The natural consequence was that I grew somewhat
cold in my desires for salvation.

In 1840 a general revival of religion broke out in
Oxford. In several weeks many souls were brought
into the liberty of the children of God. I and my
wife went regularly to the altar of prayer, but did
not find the pearl of great price, and toward the close
of the meeting my old temptations returned, espe-
cially as one evening while I was kneeling at the
altar for prayer, an old brother said to me that he
believed I must be a great sinner, because nearly
all the seekers had found peace and I was still un-
converted. "You have thought correctly," said I to
myself; " I am the greatest of all sinners, and it is
vain for me to grieve my God any longer by remain-
ing here." I arose and went home sorrowful; and
that night my disquietude did not allow me to sleep

152 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

any. I feared every moment that I might sink into
perdition. Yet I derived some comfort in the re-
flection that God delighteth not in the death of the
sinner. I commenced anew to sigh and pray, and
formed the resolution not to give up, but to wrestle
like Jacob; and if the Lord condemned me I would
go to despair praying, and in hell I would ac-
knowledge his righteous judgment. That night I
prayed till the morning of the following day. It
was the second of March, 1840, I went into my
upper room and fell on my knees before the Lord,
with the firm determination not to let him go till he
blessed me. When I had remained about two hours
on my knees the Lord heard my prayer. I could
look up by an eye of faith and see how the blood
of Jesus was shed for me. By faith I could hear him
say, "Thy sins are forgiven thee; go in peace, and sin
no more." My load of sin was gone, and the op-
pressive mountain had been cast by faith " into the
sea." Inexpressible joy filled my enraptured soul;
all nature seemed to wear a lovely aspect; the trees
of the woods seemed to clap their hands for joy. I
sunk into the dust and cried with grateful emotions,
" Abba, Father." Blessed be God that he willeth not
the death of the sinner, but that he return and live.
Blessed be God that he has given us this free coun-
try, in which men are allowed to proclaim his holy
Gospel in its purity, which delivers the sinner from
his spiritual bondage. And blessed be God that he
has called the Methodist Church into existence, and
that he has put it into the heart of our American
brethren to preach to the poor rationalistic, unbelieving
Germans the Gospel of peace. May the Lord bless

G. L. MULFINGER. 153

our Methodist brethren for their love to the Germans
in time, and reward them in eternity ! And may he
yet long let the Methodist Church labor, and stand as
a city on a hill and as a light in the world, till the last
sinner is brought to Christ !

Most remarkable did the holy Scripture appear
after my conversion. When I opened the Bible it
appeared very strange, that whereas before my con-
version all seemed to condemn me, now all appeared
to have changed into precious promises; and so it
was, for faith in the atoning blood of Christ had
changed all into blessings. The word of God was now
" a lamp to my feet and a light to my path," Much
that appeared dark before now appeared clear, and I
was astonished at my former darkness. As I had
now become a partaker of the liberty of the children
of God, so I also wished that my countrymen might
become partakers of the same blessings; but as there
were no Germans in Oxford I moved to Lawrenceburg
again, where a society had been formed, to which my
father, brother, and sisters, and, in a Avord, all my
relations belonged. These, with my beloved compan-
ion, were soon all converted to God.

I felt at this time a great desire to labor for the
cause of God, and to exhort my fellow-men, and the
Lord often blessed me in the attempt; however, my
natural diffidence soon gained the mastery over me
again. The temptation came that it was pride in me
to think that God had called such an unworthy and
ignorant being to labor in his vineyard; and, on this
ground, when brother Kisling, in the year 1841, offered
me ■ license to exhort, I refused to take it. I soon
felt that the divine presence was in a measure with-

154 GEHMAN MISSIONARIES.

drawn from me. Temptations grew stronger, and my
delight in the Lord decreased, so that I soon found my-
self in a very barren state in spiritual things. The next
year I discovered my error, and promised the Lord to
obey his call if the door were opened for me. In the
fall brother Breunig, preacher in charge, appointed me
class-leader. I had many happy hours in this class,
which I led two years and a half. At the close of
the year 1843 the brethren requested me again to
take the office of an exhorter. I received it as from
the hand of God, with firm trust that he would sus-
tain me. But here the enemy attacked me on my
weak side again. My diffidence to stand up in public
and to speak was in my way, and every time I ex-
pected to be called on to stand up and exhort, the
enemy tempted me so that my whole body began to
tremble, and I was often led to think that God would
not sustain such an unworthy being as I was ; but he
has always supported me, and given me liberty to
speak when I arose in his name to declare his Avord.
I prayed the Lord to take these temptations from me,
and he has heard my prayer and enabled me to rise
above them.

In the summer of 1844, after having passed through
the usual examination, I was licensed to preach the
Gospel. In view of the scarcity of German preachers,
the quarterly conference recommended me to the
traveling connection, but to me there appeared some
insurmountable difficulties in the way. There was,
first, my want of experience and qualification for the
work. Secondly, my business was such that I could
not give it up without great sacrifice to my family;
and, withal, my wife was not willing to leave her home

G. L. MULFINGER. 155

and friends, and I thought too that I might be useful
Avhere I was as a local preacher. I prayed to the Lord
for direction, and promised to follow the openings of
his providence. In this the Lord heard my prayer,
and soon two brethren came, of their own accord, and
purchased my property, and this left me means to
provide a home for my family, in case I should be
taken away, or fail in the work from want of health.
Accordingly my recommendation was taken to the
Ohio conference; and, in the year 1845, I was sent
to Fort Wayne, Indiana, to labor there as German
missionary. This was a new field, and contained
many enemies of Methodism. Fort Wayne is the
principal seat of the Puseyite Lutheran Church.
When I first came here not one of my German coun-
trymen bade me welcome. Catholics, Lutherans, and
Romish priests warned their people against me as a
deceiver. I was alone and inexperienced, and a
"large valley of dry bones" lay before me. Yet I
thanked God in knowing that he was with me. I
commenced to preach and to visit the people in their
houses, and prayed with them ; and, at the end of the
year, I had a society of some thirty members, who
were earnestly seeking to work out their salvation.
A neat brick church was built, which cost twelve
hundred dollars, of which eight hundred were paid.
The next year I was returned to this field. This was
a year of great trials to me ; I was sick of the fever
eight months ; my family was also sick ; yet my labor
appeared not to be in vain. Several more were con-
verted, and the members grew in grace, and were en-
gaged in working out their salvation. The balance
of our church debt, with the exception of two hun-

156 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

dred dollars, Tvas paid. Yet, after all, it was a year
of great affliction to me and mine. At our last con-
ference, at Columbus, I was sent to Laughery mission,
which is a two weeks' circuit, with thirteen appoint-
ments, and about one hundred and fifty miles round.
Notwithstanding the labor is hard, and the roads are
bad, yet, so far, this has been the happiest year of
my life. Souls are being awakened from their slum-
bers, and since conference I have received some
twenty into our society. There are three Roman
Catholic priests within the bounds of this mission to
oppose us. Yet we are constantly gaining ground.
The Lord is with us — may he ever remain with us !
My motto is onward; and my soul thirsts for the per-
fect love of God, of which, by times, I have a strong
foretaste. "While I live, if the Church has any thing
for me to do, I expect to spend all my powers of soul
and body in the service of my God and the Methodist
Episcopal Church, and shall never forget that she was
the means of my conversion and the conversion of my
friends and relations ; and, while I have breath, I shall
not cease to labor and pray for her. And from
heaven I expect to look down and rejoice over the
conversions of generations yet unborn, through her
instrumentality.

Note. — The above was written by brother Mulfinger ten years ago.
He has labored faithfully ever since ; a good part of the time as
presiding elder, and he is now, 1859, presiding elder of the Burling-
ton district, Rock River conference.

H. KOENEKE. ' * •'157

CHAPTER XI.

EXPERIENCE OF H. KOENEKE.

I WAS born in Germany, in the kingdom of Hano-
ver, May 28, 1800. My father died in the prime of
life, leaving my mother with five children, of which I
was the oldest, being nine years of age, and my
brother Charles, now German missionary in Illinois,
was the youngest, being eleven months old. My
mother was a widow twenty years, and endeavored to
train us up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
The impressions that were made on my youthful mind
often followed me in my course of sin. In the year
1824 I was married; but at this time I was in a sad
condition. I had given myself to drinking and gam-
bling ; yet, for the sake of making a living, I fully
resolved that, as I had taken a wife, I would break
ofi" from all these vices. But, alas ! I had soon to
learn that I was no longer master of myself, and that
these contracted habits held a control over me.

What I now learned by experience, I could not
previously have believed ; for it was a favorite maxim
with me, that man was able to govern himself.
With my strongest resolutions, however, I was not
able to resist sin. I often saw clearly that, unless a
change took place, I should not only plunge myself
into an untimely grave, but leave my wife and
children in a most sorrowful condition. I did not like

J**

158 GEKMAN MISSIONARIES.

to think of death and eternity, for these thoughts
usually disturbed my mind. In this vacillating con-
dition, sometimes having pious resolutions, and then
again thoughtlessly transgressing, I spent ten years
of my married life. During this time my wife shed
many a tear ; but her principal comfort, probably,
consisted in the reflection, that most of the women in
the place where we lived were not any better oiF than
she was. The village in which we lived contained
about twenty houses, and in it were twelve taverns,
all of Avhich had a good run of custom. There was
also a Lutheran church, in which worship Avas held
every Sabbath morning, from 10 to 12 o'clock. Many
of the members, however, Avould visit the taverns be-
fore going to church, and a majority of the remainder
would take their dram at home ; so that I can most
confidently aver that there were scarcely ever ten men
in church Avho had not been drinking whisky. As
soon as worship was over, all kinds of amusements
were commenced in the tavern. The dancing-floor '
was cleared ofi", music struck up, and an invitation
given to dance. The ninepin-alley and card-table
were put in a state of readiness. Thus Avas Sabbath-
breaking set in motion, which often continued till late
in the night. Sometimes, hoAvever, their hilarity Avas
interrupted by quarrelings, contentions, and bloAvs.
Many Avould go home with wounded and bruised
heads ; and others, robbed of their senses, would
stagger to their dAvellings.

From such a miserable life God delivered me in
1834. In the night, between the 26th and 27th of
December, I had been playing cards from 2 o'clock,
P. M., till 12 o'clock at night, and lost considerable

H.KOENEKE. 159

money. On my way home the thought came into my
mind, Ho^y wrong have I clone ! All my money is
spent, and in the morning I shall much need it. I
have an industrious wife and five children at home,
and yet I spend every thing in a wrong way. With
this thought, it appeared as if God from heaven spoke
to my heart, saying, "Also against me hast thou
sinned." While these thoughts were passing in my
mind I could not move a step. Many of my past
sins were brought to remembrance, and my heart was
so affected, that in the midnight hour, under the open
canopy, I was constrained to cry aloud, while tears
flowed from my eyes in greater quantities than they
had ever done before. How long this continued I
can not tell. I finally went home with a heavy heart,
and with a firm resolution to forsake my ungodly
companions, and to regulate my life according to the
word of God. I had also received so much light, as
led me not to depend upon my own strength, but to
pray to God that he might aid me to put my good
resolutions into practice.

I now believed, in the honesty of my heart, that I
ought not to express my feelings to any one in our
village, notwithstanding I would gladly have done it
had I believed that I could find one among them that
was like-minded with myself. This brought me to

think, that perhaps the people in T and B ,

of whose religion and piety so much was said, might
be of the same mind as myself, and, consequently, a
desire was waked up within me to have some conver-
sation with them. I had often heard that they se-
verely condemned dancing, playing, drunkenness, and
such like things. This induced me to believe that I

160 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

should agree with them. They lived twenty miles
from my place of residence, and had been converted
through the instrumentality of Moravian missionaries.
These missionaries, however, I at that time did not
know, for they were called by diflferent names, as
mystics, pietists, etc. I now, for the first time, made
known to my wife that I wished to visit the people in

T . She, however, was not satisfied with my

purpose ; and besides this, she had noticed that, in
the few weeks past, I had been industriously reading
the Bible, and she was afraid that I should bring as
great a reproach upon her and myself as lay upon
these people themselves. This threw me into a state
of painful anxiety ; and I secretly prayed to God that
he would teach me the right way ; and he so ordered
it, that in the course of two or three weeks, a man
met me on the street, whom, from his dress, I judged
to have come from that place.* I spoke to him, and

asked him whether he came from T or B ?

" From B ," was the answer. I then said, " Please

tell me what kind of people those are in your neigh-
borhood, who have all kinds of nicknames, and hold
meetings out of the church?" "I am one of them,"
was the reply, while he looked very friendly at me.
I was now, with an anxious heart, much interested in
him.

He commenced with an account of conversion, and
the new birth, and of the lost condition of the natural
man, etc. I then related to him how it had lately
been with me ; upon which he said that God had
awakened me, and that I should seek, through Jesus,

* In Germany, each district has some peculiarity in dress.

H. KOENEKE. 161

for the pardon of my sins. He explained to me, as
well as he could, the way of salvation, and exhorted
me not to be ashamed of being a follower of Christ,
but willingly to take up and bear the cross, and seek
out others, and meet with them to read the Bible and
engage in prayer. He then left me, and I followed
his advice. I often prayed with deep penitential feel-
ings, but always in secret places. I wished to pray
publicly in my family, yet a false shame kept me back.
At this period of my repentance my wife noticed
that I was really in earnest, and the people soon
began to scoflf at me. My wife then laid every thing
in my way; and when she found she could not ac-
complish her object, she commenced weeping and
lamenting that I had exposed her to so much reproach.
She had eleven brothers, and a large number of rela-
tives. For two evenings in succession she was very
much enraged. The third evening I had some fearful
forebodings, but I continued in prayer to God. On this
evening I was indeed put upon the severest trial that
I had ever experienced in all my life. She urged me
most earnestly to give up my religious course entirely?
and told me that if I continued to live in this way
she would leave me. After various threatenings,
which I can not describe, I finally asked myself. What
shall I do ? the peace of my family will be certainly
destroyed. I sprang up, not being able any longer
to endure it. I got my Bible in order to read in it,
and as I opened it, I read in the superscription to the
116th Psalm: "Comfort for the afflicted." Then,
thought I, with a sorrowful heart and tears in mine
eyes, this may be something for me. As I read the
first verses I felt as though the Psalm had been writ-

11

162 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

ten expressly for me. When I had read it through,
I had such comfort and such a strengthening of my
faith, that I resolved with renewed courage to take
up my cross, and concluded that the hand of the
Almighty could change my situation. I therefore
once more prayed to God with a stammering voice.
I read the Psalm again, and then retired to rest
quietly, my Avife having by this time gone to sleep.
But I could not sleep the whole night long, being
filled with hope and confidence in the almighty power
of God; and thus, with watching and prayer, I
waited anxiously for the day.

The next morning she would not speak to me. I,
however, addressed her as follows: "Beloved wife, I
have something to say to you. If I had seven wives
opposing me, and if each of them were seven times
worse than you are, it would be out of their power to
turn me from my purpose, for in my temptation God
has strengthened me. Come and see this Psalm."
She Avould not, however, read herself; so I commenced,
and she listened with patience. And from that hour
I had by the grace of God the victory. My wife was
changed, and never persecuted me again. Here I
must confess that I was not yet converted ; but this
was only a degree of preventing grace, which God
granted me in my awakening, for I well knew that I
should have to experience a greater change. I had
no assurance of God's favor, nor the pardon of my
sins. Many a day I went from four to eight times in
secret, fell upon ray knees and prayed to God, and
often received some comfort, but still I lacked a living
faith. Sometimes, however, I had the assurance that
in case I should die in this penitent state, God, for

,,

n. KOENEKE. 163

Christ's sake, would have mercy on me, and take me
to heaven.

I now began to look around to see if I could not
find some one to unite with me in seeking salvation.
One Sabbath afternoon I went into a house in which
I kncAV there was a woman who was in the habit of
reading her Bible. I met some others there. We
continued meeting from time to time to read the
Scriptures, and Arndt's True Christianity, and also to
pray with each other. In a few weeks our number
increased, so that we had from ten to twelve at our
meetings, among whom also was my wife.

This was in May, 1834. It was not long till we

were visited by the brethren from T and B .

We commenced our meetings with singing and prayer.
And how astonished we were to hear one of them
offer up a powerful prayer from the heart ! Such a
prayer I had never heard in all my life. I viewed this
as the effect of divine grace, and resolved afresh fully
to make a surrender of myself to God; and I found,
after persevering in prayer, the pardon of my sins in
the blood of the Lamb. A living fiiith was begotten
in my heart, and I felt that I could praise the God of
my salvation. I now undertook to be the leader of
this society. The number so increased, that in two
years we had thirty persons. We were not only
exposed to persecution from the world, but were so
circumscribed in our privileges that we could not
serve God according to the dictates of our conscience.
This awakened in me a strong desire to go to Amer-
ica, as I had often heard much of the religious liberty
enjoyed in this country.

I, with my wife, and another family, agreed to start

164 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

for America, and we landed safely in Baltimore on
the 11th January, 1836. We did not remain there
long, but moved to Wheeling, Virginia. I was in high
expectation of soon meeting some German American
brethren ; but, alas ! I found myself disappointed. I
then visited the Lutheran Church, which had hitherto
been my Church; but as I did not find much of the
spirit of religion there, I began, with the family above
alluded to, and another family, to hold meetings again.
Our number increased to twenty-five or thirty. Soon
afterward, however, most of them removed to Ma-
rietta. Some time after this I heard that the Meth-
odists were going to send out missionaries among the
Germans, and that they were about publishing a Ger-
man religious paper. This was in 1838. I had for
some time attended the English Methodist Church in
Wheeling, and after due reflection and examination,
I Avas induced to write a letter to Rev. William Nast,
who was to be the editor of the paper, with a request
that he Avould use his influence to have a missionary
sent to Wheeling.

On the 24th of December of the same year brother
John Swahlen came as an agent to Wheeling, to obtain
subscribers for the Apologist. We held a meeting
the same evening, rejoiced togetlier, and the next day
we united with the Church on probation. Brother
Swahlen was afterward sent to us as a missionary,
and I was appointed class-leader and exhorter. God
was with us during the first year, and our society
increased to eighty-three members.

I was subsequently licensed to preach, and became
a missionary to the Germans. From the Ohio con-
ference, 1843, 1 was sent to Evansvillc, Indiana. This

H. KOENEKE. 165

mission was commenced the previous year, by brother
Schmucker. I found fifty probationers, of which six
were converted. So soon as the Lord made known
his power in the awakening of sinners, the enemies
of the cross of Christ manifested themselves, and
that not in a small degree; for there were many Cath-
olics and rationalists here. However, in spite of all
this the work of the Lord prospered. The mission
was enlarged, and at nearly every point we had to
pray with penitent seekers of religion. By incessant
labor and exertions I became so exhausted that I was
scarcely able to do the work which was before me,
yet the Lord continued to increase our numbers.

The following summer the heat became more ex-
cessive than I had been accustomed to, and the cli-
mate did not appear to agree with me, and toward
the close of August I was taken with the prevailing
fever; and, after lying five weeks, I was seized with
an attack of cholera morbus. I myself, with all who
saw me, did not believe that I could recover. I was
so near death that I believe I could not come nearer
to my Savior without being admitted into his pres-
ence. By faith I laid myself with childlike submis-
sion into the will of God, and knew that Jesus Avas
my Savior, and through his grace I was prepared
to die. But it pleased my heavenly Father to
leave me awhile longer here in his service, and
after three months' sickness I could commence again
to preach the word of the Lord.

I was returned to this place, and in this year we
built a brick church in Evansville and two log
churches in the country. I left the mission with a
hundred and sixty-seven members, and a third church

TQQ GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

in the course of building, with a good prospect for
future success.

In 1545 I was transferred to the Illinois confer-
ence, and was appointed presiding elder of the St.
Louis German district. In the different missions on
this district there were eight churches and four hun-
dred and eighty-five members. I found in my first
round that I had many difficulties to contend with to
find my way through the wilderness and thinly-settled
counties. Yet at every quarterly meeting I was per-
mitted to see some fruits of our labors in remarkable
awakenings and conversions, of which I will name a
few. One was on the St. Charles mission. Here
twenty-two joined on probation, among them a man
whose wife was very much opposed to him, and cen-
sured him most bitterly for the step he had taken.
She lamented very much that he had fallen from the
faith, as she intended to live and die a Lutheran. The
man, however, who had been converted, treated her
most kindly, and persuaded her to accompany him
to the next quarterly meeting, which was held the
8th of September, 1846. Here the Lord opened her
heart, and she felt the need of a Savior. Tears of
penitence rolled over her face, and under the prayers
of the Church she found peace and comfort to her
soul. At the close of this meeting we gave an invi-
tation to those who wished to join our Church. A
number came forward and gave us their names, and
among them this woman. At this time a remark-
able circumstance occurred here. Another man
joined us whose wife instantly took the place of
the one that had just been converted, and began to
persecute her husband. She cried aloud, and left

H, KOENEKE. 167

the house; sat down behind a barn, and continued to
cry aloud nearly one hour. She said her husband
had fallen from the faith — that she had seen symp-
toms of this for some time past, for he had of late
been constantly at his Bible in secret, and tried to
keep it from her. The man replied, " Dear wife, how
gladly would I speak with you on these subjects, but
you are not willing to hear me." "0, go away," re-
plied she ; " we are parted, I can no longer live with
you." While she was in this condition the first-
named woman stepped up to her and said, " I pity
you from the bottom of my heart, for I was three
months in the condition in which you now find your-
self, but I did not go to such extremes as you do ;
and to-day I thank God that I have been delivered
from this sad condition." As she told of her con-
version tears of joy rolled down her face, and she
added, " My eyes are not only opened to see my folly
and my ignorance, but also to see the necessity of
repentance and conversion, and I now feel that 1
have a true faith. I only wish heartily that you may
not torment yourself so long as I did, and soon ex-
perience that Christ is your Redeemer. So soon as
this is the case you will love the Methodists, and be
glad to join them as I have done. You will soon
find that your husband is not worse than he was be-
fore, but much better. May the Lord soon deliver
you from this condition !" and with these words she
left her with the remark, "I will pray for you." I
exhorted the man to be steadfast, and commended
him to the great Shepherd of his sheep. Several
months afterward this woman was converted.

The Gth of July, 184G, I commenced my third

168 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

round on the district, and had happy times. I spent
two weeks on the Weston mission, administered the
sacrament of the Lord's supper at four diiferent
places, and baptized thirty-one persons. A number
were converted to God, and eighteen joined the
Church during this visit.

On the Versailles mission, twenty miles from Boone-
ville, we had a two days' meeting, and, according to
custom, we called for penitents to come to the altar
of prayer; among those who came were a Rom.an
Catholic woman and girl, who also joined us. As
soon as this had occurred, a Catholic man left the
house and went and told the father of the girl that
his daughter had joined the Methodists. He was
much enraged, and concealed himself near the road
on which she returned. As she came to the place
where he was he rushed from his concealment, laid
hold of his daughter and beat her most unmercifully."
Though compelled to leave her parental roof, and
seek a home with her brother-in-law, she remained
a member of our Church. As for the woman, her
husband told her that if she dared to go to the Meth-
odist Church again he would take his rifle and shoot
her.

In Warren county, Missouri, a young woman, of
seventeen years, was driven from her parents' house
because she joined our Church. Yet she escaped
without beating. However, in the same neighborhood,
a man who had found peace with God, and joined us,
was beaten dreadfully by his own brother, who was a
doctor, saying that he would beat Methodism out of
him. In this he, however, did not succeed, for the
converted man only became more zealous in the cause

H. KOENEKE. 169

The doctor soon discovered his mistake, and went to
his brother to ask his pardon. About this time many
rationalists were awakened and converted, besides a
number of Roman Catholics. This was a year of
prosperity on all these missions, though we had much
opposition in various ways. Of this I will relate the
following instance : I had made an appointment in a
large German settlement. A friend promised to see
that I should have the Lutheran church to preach in ;
but, when the day for preaching arrived, as I was
going to the place, I saw in the distance, to my as-
tonishment, a large number of persons collected
around the church. In the beginning I thought that
curiosity had brought out the people, as I knew there
were many rationalists and Catholics in the place, but
I soon perceived thairthere was a dispute and conten-
tion among them. The majority were not willing that
I should preach in the church, and the disturbance
increased, so that there was a great contention, and a
prospect of a general fight appeared. I sought to
restore order by making signs and beckoning to the
people, and in a good measure succeeded in getting
their attention, and then addressed them in the fol-
lowing words :

" Dear people, think of what you are doing ; I have
not come here to take away your church, but to preach
to you the. word of God, and he Avho does not wish
to hear it has full liberty to stay away. As you have
such a contention, and are not willing that I should
preach here, I wish to inform you that I will preach
in the house of my friend Sandford, half a mile from
here, and all who wish to hear me will accompany me

to that place."

15

170 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

At once tlie contention commenced again, but when
I left many followed, so that our house was full. I
thought, for a moment, that it would be useless to
preach to a people that had just been so much ex-
cited. Yet I had the comfort to know that if there
was a difference in the crowd I had the better part
of them. I directed them to sing for some time, that
they might become calm. The Lord blessed this meet-
ing in such a manner that tears of contrition flowed
from more than a score of eyes. This was not a
superficial excitement, for many began to ask what
they must do to be saved. After I had taken my
dinner and was about to start on my journey, I found
a dozen in an adjoining room, who besought me to
tarry awhile longer and prajjL with them, which I
cheerfully did. I immediately wrote to the preacher
on the Versailles mission to visit this place, and to
form a society. This was accordingly done, and there
is now here one of the principal appointments on the
Jefferson mission.

Soon after this, on 7th of August, 1848, our St.
Louis camp meeting commenced, which proved to be
a great blessing to many. Thirty-two were con-
verted, and twenty-five joined the Church. Here,
also, a remarkable circumstance occurred. A certain
woman who had a desire to visit the camp meeting, #
obtained leave of her husband to accompany one of '
our brethren, with the promise that he would follow
on Sabbath morning. She was awakened under the
first sermon, and came to the altar for prayer; and,
by continued supplication and faith, she found peace
Avith God. We greeted her joyfully, as a new sister
in Christ, while she felt herself baptized with the

H. KOENEKE. 171

Spirit from on high. On Sabbath morning, as her
husband came, she approached him joyfully, and de-
clared to him that she had obtained salvation. He
became enraged and so angry that he determined not
to remain, and declared that she might go where she
pleased — he would go and sell his horse and wagon,
and break every thing in the house to pieces, and then
leave her. He would not be entreated, but went oflF
leaving her with us. The poor woman, sorrowful at
what might take place, felt it her duty to return home
at the first opportunity, which was on the following
night. On Monday morning, as she arrived at home,
she found the house locked, and had to enter in
through the window. She found every thing in order,
but could not find a trace of her husband except his
pocket handkerchief, which lay wet on the floor before
the bed. With an anxious heart she awaited the ar-
rival of her husband. Her heart began to beat
quicker as she heard him approach the door. He
unlocked the door, walked in, and in a soft tone said,
" Are you here already ? You might have remained,
and I too would have come again." She noticed that
something had produced a great change in him, and
asked him what it was. Upon this he could no longer
refrain from tears, and confessed that during the past
night he had wept over his sins, till his handkerchief
was wet with his tears. He then related that after he
had gone two miles from the camp meeting, such a
feeling came over him that he had to cast himself upon
the ground and confess his wrong. He felt that he
was a great sinner, and this feeling still pressed him
down. An inward joy sprang up in her heart that
God had heard her prayers, and she commenced to

172 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

pray now more especially for his conversion. He
soon obtained peace, and they are now both faithful
members of our Church.

At our conference, in the fall of 1846, I received
an appointment to a new district, a thousand miles
around ; on this we had many awakenings and power-
ful conversions : among others, the following, which
occurred in the St. Charles mission : an elder of the
Lutheran Church, who had been a great persecutor
of our members, and sought in every way to bring
the work of God into disrepute, came one day, as by
accident, into our church, just as worship was com-
mencing. He concluded to stay and see what the
Methodists were doing, so that he might collect some-
thing of which to make sport among his comrades ;
but this was the hour in which his conscience was'
awakened. The word of God was as a two-edged
SATord to him, and he left the house deeply smitten in
his spirit, yet without being observed by others. As
he had three miles to go home, he meditated upon the
way on what he had heard, and the Holy Spirit found
way to his heart, and he was brought to see himself
a great sinner. Scarcely had he reached his house
when his distress of mind became so great that he
could not well conceal his feelings. In this condition
he did not like to appear before his family, and there-
fore hastened to the stable and fell down on his face
and cried aloud for deliverance. His wife and chil-
dren in the house soon heard the noise, ran out, and
knew the voice of the father, thinking that a great
misfortune had befallen him. But as soon as they
saw him in this condition, they thought he was de-
ranged. The neighbors and especial friends were

H. KOENEKE. 173

immediately sent for, while others came of their own
accord, so that, in the course of an hour, the whole
yard was full of people. All united in the opinion
that he was deranged, as he continued to cry to the
Almighty for help, and declared himself as lost. The
wisest among them recommended that a doctor, who
lived about ten miles off, should be sent for with all
speed. As they were preparing to send for him, a
brother S. passed by, and saw the great crowd of
people, and heard among them a voice of lamentation.
He hastened to see what this might mean ; but as he
remembered seeing this same man before at church,
and how attentively he had listened to the sermon, of
which all there knew nothing, he at once concluded
the man must be under awakening, and as he ap-
proached and spoke to the penitent man, he began to
cry out, " 0, brother S., pray for me ; I am lost."
The brother now had a blessed work before him, and
at the same time, with difl&culty, restrained them from
sending for the physician. After he had prayed with
him for some time, the man sprang up, filled with the
love of God and the assurance of the pardon of all
his sins, and commenced to praise his Savior aloud.
In the course of a few minutes the whole crowd •'dis-
persed.

New doors are constantly opening to us, and our
meetings are more and more attended. Our camp
meetings among the Germans have proved a great
blessing to us, as our brethren take much interest in
them. Methodism is destined to spread among the
Germans of this country, and in less than ten years
"we hope to extend our labors over Germany.

174 GERMAN MISSIONAEIES.

CHAPTER XII.

G. DANKER — C. HELWIG — J. H. BAHRENBURQ.
EXPERIENCE OF G. DANKER.

In the year 1824, when I was about thirty years
old, the Lord awakened me from my sleep of sin. I
lived in the kingdom of Hanover, about fifteen miles
from Bremen, Germany. Nothing was heard about
conversion in our country, and consequently nothing
was known of converted people. People were satis-
fied to hear a sermon once in two or three weeks, but
this was nothing except a dead morality. Every three
months we made confession of past sins, and took the
sacrament of the Lord's supper, which we considered
would render us free from sin. This Avas the custom
there in the Lutheran Church, to which I belonged.

I Avas not awakened through the instrumentality
of a pious preacher; it was the Lord himself who
awakened me. It was a severe penitential struggle,
continuing for more than a year, through which I
passed. I had no teacher but the word of God, which
made me more sorrowful than joyful. I tried to bet-
ter myself, and prayed earnestly Avith tears to God
for power to do so. I endeavored, in my own
strength, to live Avithout sin, and kncAV nothing of
that faith by Avhicli Ave are saved through grace. As
I was at Bremen in the summer, there came a young
man to me, in the good providence of God, who took

a. DANKER. 175

me the next morning to the St. Michael's Church,
Avhere I heard a sermon from F. R. Mallett, such as
I had not heard in all my life. It -was penetrating,
spiritual, and full of life. All my self-righteousness
was taken from me, and, at the same time, I was di-
rected to Jesus, as the Lamb of God. The same
evening, by perseverance in prayer, I obtained the
pardon of my sins and peace with God.

After my conversion, when I became more inti-
mately acquainted with the preacher, Frederick R.
Mallett, he requested me to hold meetings. Following
his good advice, I commenced to preach the word of
God to others ; but opposition arose, and an officer
was sent to disperse our meetings. I was brought
before the civil authorities ; but this did not result in
any thing serious, and we finally obtained liberty to
preach when we pleased. The number of those that
believed was increased, so that, in a short time, meet-
ings were held in four places.

In the year 1836 I came to America, not with a view
to preach, or to say any thing to others about conver-
sion, but from a desire to live piously with my family,
and so keep my religion to myself, I settled at
Marietta, Ohio ; but soon commenced preaching again,
and have continued to do so ever since. Sinners were
awakened and converted ; and although I had the
name of Lutheran, my people were called Methodists.
About this time the Methodists commenced their
work among the Germans in Marietta, where I had
my society.

On one occasion I preached in the English Meth-
odist church. Under the sermon some began to cry
aloud for mercy ; some fell down beside their seats

176 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

and began to pray ; and this was the first time I ever
prayed with penitents in the Church. It caused some
disturbance in the Lutheran Church, so that two weeks
afterward I withdrew, and delivered my farewell ser-
mon. Rev. C. Best, preacher in charge, and N. Callen-
der, presiding elder, extended the hand of friendship
to me ; and after seven weeks' serious reflection and
prayer, I joined the Methodists, and was received as
local preacher in the quarterly conference. Brother
Callender appointed me to the Marietta mission, and
forty-two of my members went with me to the Meth-
odist Church. This was in the year 1839. In 1840
I was sent to the Monroe mission in Ohio. In 1841
I Avas ordained deacon, and in 1842 I was ordained
elder in the Church. Since my connection with the
Methodist Church I have seen many souls converted,
among whom are a goodly number Avho came to this
country as Roman Catholics. I thank God that the
Methodist Episcopal Church ever sent her mission-
aries to the Germans. May the blessing of God rest
upon the Church for this labor of love, and reward
her members in time and in eternity !

EXPERIENCE OF CHARLES HELWIG.

I was born in the duchy of Nassau, on the 30th
of December, 1818, of Protestant parents. My
parents were moral in their lives, and I was brought
up to strict morality; yet I felt the seeds of corrup-
tion within, and the imagination of my heart was evil
from youth up. The confirmation, which took place
in my fourteenth year, made no especial impression
on my mind, because our preacher was an uncon-
verted man. Soon after the confirmation wc had a

CHARLES HELWIG. 177

churcli dedication feast, which was hekl every year
on the Sabbath day, accompanied with a ball, to
which the newly-made Christians also went, danced,
and used strong drink.

Fortunately for me and my family, in the year 1834
we emigrated to this happy land, and arrived at Balti-
more on the first of January, 1835. In this city my
sister was a member of the Zion's Church. The
preacher then told the children, by no means to be-
lieve that there was a hell into which God would cast
the workmanship of his hands. But it pleased the
Lord to lead us to his people in the Otterbein*
Church. The spiritual worship there soon convinced
us of the necessity of a new birth, and our whole
family were converted in the winter of 1836. Here
I was awakened to a sense of my lost condition.
Nothing could satisfy my soul but the blood of my
Redeemer; and I made the resolution, like Jacob of
old, to wrestle for his blessing. It was granted, and
I felt that I was born again, and translated into the
joyful kingdom of God's children.

In the year 1837 we moved to Wheeling, where we
remained three months. In this place we joined the
Methodists, and labored with them. God blessed us
abundantly, and in a short time fourteen families
were converted. We afterward moved to Marietta,
Ohio, where a large society was formed, out of
which there are now nine preachers in the vineyard
of Christ. I remained here eight years, and often

*This is the old Church of Otterbein, in which the followers of
that venerable man have preached since his day. Otterbein assisted
at the ordination of Bishop Asbury.

178 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

had strong desires to devote myself wholly to the
service of God, but thought that if it was his will
that I should do so he would open a way for me.
Often when I looked at the lost and neglected con-
dition of the Germans of this country my soul was
sorrowful. Finally a door was opened for me, and
by the advice of brother Schmucker and brother Nast
I started out to seek some destitute Germans in the
state of Indiana, and went to Madison. I met with
many hinderances, but I prayed earnestly to my heav-
enly Father to show me whether I was in the way of
my duty. He answered my prayer in the awaken-
ing and conversion of souls. My faith was strength-
ened, and I removed with a Avidowed mother and
two sisters to Madison. My father had died while
we yet lived in Marietta.

I labored night and day for two years and a half
as a local preacher, and when I left our society had
increased to between forty and fifty. Since then I
have had some hard fields to cultivate ; yet the Lord
has abundantly blessed me. May God make me
more useful !

EXPERIENCE OF J. H. BAHRENBURG.

I was born in the year 1814, in the kingdom of
Hanover, of Christian parents, and members of the
Lutheran Church. Notwithstanding they at that
time knew nothing of a change of heart or the new
birth, they lived upright and pious lives, and prayed
night and morning in the family. I therefore en-
joyed a good training and education, so far as it was
in their power to give it to me. As I grew up I was
thrown into ungodly society, and heard more swear-

J. H. BAHRENBURa. 179

ing than praying. My parents did not allow me to
go to the various wicked places of amusement. Yet
this did not change my wicked heart, though it pre-
served me from outbreaking sins. The preacher of
our place was a blind guide. He confirmed me, and
received me into the Church; but of experimental
Christianity he knew nothing.

About this time there was a number of persons
powerfully awakened through the Spirit of God in
our neighborhood; some were converted, and my
father united with them. In their meetings they
sung, read, and prayed, and told each other what
Jesus had done for their souls. My father then took
me with him to those meetings, and I there received
such good impressions that I formed the resolution
to forsake the world and serve the Lord. Scarcely
had I made this noble resolution when persecutions
commenced against us. Opposition arose from every
side, and the preacher denounced us openly from the
pulpit as fools. All this did not deter me, but rather
helped me on ; and my father admonished me to be
steadfast in my purpose, and related to me what he
had experienced at those meetings. In this condition
I spent about one year praying and weeping between
hope and fear. The reason why I had to bear my
load of sins so long was, no doubt, this : I was
ashamed to bear reproach for the sake of Christ; but
finally the wicked cast me oif, and now I thought to
myself, the ungodly have disowned me, and I am not
fit to go with God's people. Yet my desire for
Christ and salvation was increased. I often prayed
in secret, but all seemed dark before me. Finally,
as I believed from the heart that Christ died for me

180 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

also, and looked to him by faith for mercy, he par-
doned my sins and accepted me. My heart was filled
with the love of God — every thing around me ap-
peared new. I could now say in truth, "0, taste
and see that the Lord is good!"

I at once felt a strong desire to proclaim to others
what the Lord had done for me. I spoke to some of
my neighbors, and held some social meetings, and
some were awakened and converted. As soon as this
work began persecution against us increased. The
whole village united to oppress us, and petitioned the
authorities of the land to suppress our meetings; but
this only increased our zeal. Our number increased,
and I continued to hold the meetings some four years.
But as we were not allowed the full exercise of our
Christian privileges, and heard that there was liberty
of conscience in America, our family concluded to go
to that country. After a stormy voyage of fifty-three
days we landed in Baltimore. From thence my father
came to Ohio, and settled in Marietta. I now found
myself in a new world, a stranger among strangers.
I went to a number of churches, but found no satis-
faction, because I did not understand the language.
Finally I went to a Methodist prayer meeting. Here
I found more than a mere form of godliness. Some
shouted aloud for joy, others were crying for mercy,
and the power of the Lord was manifested in a way
I had never seen before. I prayed to the Lord in my
own language, and enjoyed such a sense of the divine
presence that I could scarcely express it. The lan-
guage of my heart was: "This is my people; I am
of one spirit with them." I now began to go to their
Sunday school to learn their language.

J. H. BAHRENBURG. 181

In tliis way I was soon acquainted with the doc-
trines and discipline of the Church, and was fully
satisfied that they corresponded with the word of
God. From this time my call to preach the Gospel
to others was stronger, and I commenced to hold
meetings among the Germans. In my meetings the
Lord blessed us, and a number were awakened and
converted. Persecution then arose again on the part
of the Lutherans ; accordingly, with the converted part
of my congregation, I joined the Methodists; which
step I have never regretted. In a short time I re-
ceived license to exhort, and some time afterward
license to preach. I then went out and preached,
often going on foot thirty or forty miles to the differ-
ent German settlements. One of these visits I will
never forget. I went with brother Koeneke, the Ger-
man missionary, to Chester and Pomeroy. When we
first arrived we could scarcely find a place to preach
in, but we finally succeeded, and the first night one
soul was converted. We held our meeting four days,
and during that time twenty-two joined our Church,
the most of whom were converted.

In July, 1842, I was received on trial in the Pitts-
burg conference, and sent to Captina, Ohio, as Ger-
man missionary. This was a hard trial for me. My
mother said to me, in tears, "My son, remain with us
Avhile we live." But I replied, "Whosoever loveth
father or mother more than me is not worthy of me."
She then bade me go, praying that God's blessing
might attend me. I commenced my work with tears
and in much weakness; but the Lord helped me, and
many souls were awakened and converted to God as
seals to my ministry. Since my commencement in

182 GERMAN MISSIONAEIES.

this work I have seen many hardships, and have had
to endure much persecution. Churches and school-
houses have been closed against me, and I have been
persecuted by my countrymen ; have had to travel far
over rough roads ; but I thank God for what he has
done for me, and for what my eyes have seen of his
work among my countrymen. My daily prayer is
that the Lord may keep me faithful.

PETEll \^LKINS. 183

CHAPTER XIII.

EXPERIENCE OF PETER WILKIN S.

I WAS born in the kingdom of Hanover, on the 22d
of January, 1819, of poor parents, who had to work
hard to obtain the necessaries of life for themselves
and their children. As members of the Lutheran
Church they sought to give us such education as their
circumstances allowed, and, at the same time, relig-
ious instruction according to the light which they had.
This consisted only in outward ceremonies, without
making any impression upon the heart. On arriving
at the year when it is customary in the Lutheran
Church to renew the baptismal vow in confirmation,
and to take the sacrament, I was sent to receive the
necessary preparatory instruction. At this time I
was deeply convinced of my sinful condition and of
the necessity of obtaining pardon. I read, from time
to time, in the word of God, and was so clearly con-
vinced of my lost condition that I had no rest for my
soul.

My instructions did not do me much good ; for, in-
stead of being directed to the Savior, we Avere di-
rected to the ceremonies of the Church, and our
spiritual guide knew nothing of the pardon of sins.
Yet, in our confirmation, he stood before us, and after
hearing our confession pretended to absolve us. I re-
newed my baptismal vow, receiVbd the holy sacrament,

184 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

but there was no peace in my soul. As I now had
to leave my parental home, in order to earn some-
thing for my parents, I became a keeper of sheep in
the barrens. My Bible was my constant companion,
and the Spirit of God continued to work on my heart.
In imagination I can yet go back to the places where
I kneeled to pray and plead with the Lord. My de-
voted disposition excited the enmity of some op-
posers of religion, and an ungodly physician ad-
vised my parents to take the Bible from me lest I
should lose my senses. At first they were inclined
to follow his counsel ; but, upon my earnest entreaty
and assurance that they would make me unhappy if
they did take from me what was my only source of
comfort, they allowed me to retain it.

At tliis time I received a call to take charge of a
small school, which I accepted. It was customary for
the teacher to board with the parents of the scholars ;
and, as I went my round, I came to a very pious man,
who prayed in his family, and from whom I received
good advice and instruction. But I could not exer-
cise that true faith by which we are saved through
grace, and thus I went on four years in doubts and
fears. I was inclined to offer myself to the Mission
Institute to prepare myself for a mission to heathen
lands; but, through the entreaties and opposition of
my mother, I abandoned this idea. I had a sister who
was sick and very low with consumption, and during
her sickness I often talked to her about religion.
Three days before her death she was converted. My
next purpose was to go to a teachers' institute and
prepare myself more fully for a teacher; but here
some circumstsaices rnade it impossible for me to go.

PETER WILKINS. 185

I was more and more convinced of the deeply-cor-
rupt condition of the learned class of society, and
the great opposition which existed against the few
that were truly pious, and my heart longed to find a
place where I could serve God without restraint.
About this time I heard of this free America, and
that there were Christians here who worship God in
spirit and in truth, and who professed to have ex-
perienced the pardon of their sins, and had the wit-
ness of the Spirit in their hearts. I now formed the
resolution to leave my father-land, and to come to
this country, and from henceforth and forever to
devote myself to the service of God. On the 9th of
June, 1837, I left the scenes of my youth, and my
parental home, bade my parents and friends farewell,
and departed in the name of the Lord. In eight
weeks I reached Baltimore. On my journey from
Baltimore to Wheeling, Virginia, I fell among spirit-
ual robbers, and soon caught the spirit of those with
whom I associated. I forgot my vows to devote
myself to God, and my aim now was to become rich,
neglecting to seek for those treasures which neither
moth nor rust doth corrupt. Yet my merciful heav-
enly Father followed me, and my heart was often
awakened from its delusion.

I had selected Marietta, Ohio, as my home, where
I heard brother Danker, then a Lutheran preacher;
but he made very little impression upon me. In the
commencement of the year 1838 brother Koeneke
came to Marietta. He held prayer meetings, and for
some time prejudice kept me away ; but as I had
heard much about these meetings, I finally concluded
to go and see for myself. The plain, pointed dis-

186 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

course affected me very much; and I, who had gone
there out of curiosity, soon surrendered myself as a
penitent sinner. All efforts were made by the enemies
of godliness to keep me back, and they so far suc-
ceeded, through my unwatchfulness, that I not only
staid from the meetings, but became myself an
enemy and opposcr of the work, and thought I was
doing God service. One night I heard brother Hart-
°man preach an awakening sermon, and being much
offended, thought I would persecute him on his Avay
home. I stood before the church door while he was
making his closing prayer; as he prayed especially
for his enemies and opposers, his prayer touched
my heart. How, thought I, can he pray for his
enemies? I went home and sought rest on my bed,
but found none. My heart was touched as with an
arrow.

I now made the resolution to lead a new life, but
the more I sti-ove to amend the worse I appeared to
grow. I was now deeply awakened; especially under
brother Banker's preaching. One Sunday afternoon,
as he preached in the English Methodist Church — he
had not then joined the Methodists — he called on me
to give out the hymn for him, and I read the one com-
mencing :

" Jesus is the sinner's friend :
that all the world might hear it I"

A searching sermon on repentance followed, by
which I was deeply affected. At the close of the
sermon we sang again, and when we came to the
last verse I could scarcely repeat the words, and
again resolved not to rest till I could say in truth that
Jesus had received me.

PETER AY ILK INS. 187

It was said of brother Danker that he Avas worse
than the Methodists, on account of his powerful dis-
courses. He finally preached his farewell sermon to
the Lutherans, and joined the Methodist Church.
On the 22d of October, 1838, I prayed for hours in
the third story of a mill ; yet my faith was too weak,
while the enemy was watchful to disturb me. The
Methodists had their prayer meeting; yet I did not
like to go to them, because I had persecuted them.
On the next day, however, I was so distressed that
I had to exclaim, " I can not live in this condition, and
to die I am unprepared." I heard that brother Dan-
ker was to preach, and went to hear him. Before he
commenced the services, he said that this was the first
time he arose to speak as a Methodist preacher. I
was glad to hear this. His sermon was very appro-
priate to my case, and I thought some one had told
him of my condition. After preaching a prayer meet-
ing was held for seekers of salvation, in which I also
engaged. The Lord heard our prayers and granted
me the pardon of my sins. Never will I forget the
evening when God spoke peace to my soul.

I felt from the first day after my conversion that
it was my duty to preach the Gospel, but there were
many hinderances in my way. Notwithstanding my
heart was restless on this subject, I kept myself back
and resisted the drawing of the Holy Spirit. In this
way I continued for three years, till I had well-nigh
lost the evidence of my acceptance with God, and
brought darkness upon my soul.

After a severe conflict in my own mind, and much
prayer to God that he might open the way for me to
proclaim the Gospel of Christ, I became willing to

188 GEKMAN MISSIONARIES.

go ; but would not go without the assurance that the
Lord would go with me. Now my peace returned
again. The Church took up my case, and brought
me out without my doing any thing to push myself
forward, and in the year 1843 I was recommended
to the conference, received on trial, and sent to St.
Louis as a missionary. I had many temptations and
trials, and several times I was laid low with sickness ;
yet it has pleased the Lord hitherto to sustain me. '
My second field of labor was the Beardstown mission,
in Illinois. Here I had a long spell of sickness, and
was completely prostrated by disease. I returned by
permission of my presiding elder, brother Jacoby,
to Marietta. I endeavored to resign myself to the
leadings of a gracious Providence, and to do what
little I could in exhorting and visiting the people.
The language of my heart was : I will do all I can,
if the Lord will give me strength. The Lord heard
my prayer and restored my health, and in the year
1845 I was appointed to the Louisville mission,
and here during my two years' labor one hundred and
thirteen joined the Church, nearly all of whom,
according to their profession, were converted.

I expect to spend my days in this cause. Though
poor in this world's wealth, I feel richer than kings
and emperors, and hope so to live that, after I have
preached to others, I may not myself become a cast-
away.

CHARLES KOENEKE. 189

CHAPTER XIY.

CHARLES KOENEKE — JOHN A. KLEIN.
EXPERIENCE OF CHARLES KOENEKE.

I CAME to America in the year 18B7, and arrived,
on the 22d of August, at Wheeling, Virginia, with my
wife and two children, where my brother Henry then
resided. My object in coming to this country was to
seek earthly treasures, in which I hoped to succeed
better than in my father-land. My prospects in the
commencement were tolerably good, but I did not
enjoy myself so well here as in the old country, on
account of being deprived of many of the pleasures
I had been accustomed to at home.

I lived with my brother, who had been converted to
God, and whose Christian life and conversation, and
religious services around the family altar, made me
still more restless. He often exhorted me to repent
of my sins ; to which I replied, " God is no more my
enemy than he is yours." He often invited me to go
with him to their meeting, which I sometimes did,
merely to please him. When I heard the preaching
I always felt a sense of condemnation ; yet I flattered
myself that God was merciful, and would finally not
deal so strictly with us. But the more I sought in
this way to quiet my conscience, the. more restless I
became. I went one evening to hear preaching, as I
thought, but there was a prayer meeting; and the

190 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

small congregation prayed earnestly, and became
quite lively; finally, a young sister commenced to
shout aloud the praises of God. This oifended me ;
yet I trembled like an aspen leaf, and knew not what
ailed me. Finally, I concluded that they were all
possessed of some bad spirit, and took my hat and
left. When I came home my wife asked me why I
came home alone. " Ah !" said I, " I have seen
strange things this evening. The people are all be-
side themselves." My wife looked earnestly in my
face and said to me, " These people are not beside
themselves ; tut they are good Christians, and we are
on the road to hell and everlasting destruction ;" and
as she said this the tears started from my eyes.
These words were as a dagger to my soul. The ar-
rows of the Almighty had pierced my heart, and I
stood as if petrified before her. My sin-stained con-
science was now fully waked up ; I sought to find
rest, but found none. I lay under the load of my
sins ; and, about midnight, I said to my wife, " Let us
pray;" and we then made a promise to each other
not to cease praying till God had pardoned our sins.
The more I prayed the heavier my burden became ;
and in this condition I spent some six weeks, till
New- Year's night, 1838. This evening, about seven
o'clock, I threw myself before the Lord, and prayed
earnestly for the pardon of my sins. A number
around me were converted, and I still lay a helpless
sinner, sometimes tempted to give up ; but, finally, I
made the resolution that, if I died, I would die at the
feet of mercy ; and so I prayed till two o'clock in the
morning. Then was the happy moment at which the
Savior entered into my heart with his peace. Old

CHAELES KOENEKE. 191

things had passed away, asd all things had become
new. This was the new birth. Immediately a new
song was put into ray mouth, and I shouted aloud the
high praises of God. My wife had received the spirit
of adoption one week before this, so that now I could
say, I and my house will serve the Lord.

I remained in Wheeling till spring, when we moved
to Marietta, Ohio, where, with a number of others, I
joined the Methodist Episcopal Church. I soon com-
menced to lead class, and to exhort the small society.
In a short time a preacher was sent to take care of
us and preach to us. For about three years I con-
tinued to exhort, when I was offered license to preach.
To this I made objections, on the ground that I was
not competent for so weighty an ofBce ; yet I received
it, and continued to labor as a local preacher till the
summer of 1842, when I was recommended to the
Ohio conference. I was received on trial, and sent to
the Belleville mission, Illinois. When I had received
my appointment I spent the first night with my wife,
in prayer, that God might prepare me for so responsi-
ble a position ; and as soon as possible I arranged my
temporal affairs, and committed myself and family
into the care of Providence. After a journey of six-
teen days, I . arrived safe at the house of brother
Jacoby, in St. Louis. The kind reception I met with
from him encouraged and strengthened me, and in
three days afterward I was on my way to my field of
labor.

Here I found a large field, like a valley of dry
bones. I felt my weakness and incompetency for the
great work before me ; yet the Lord was with us, and
helped me, and a number were converted. When I

192 GEKMAN MISSIONARIES.

now look back and see how the Lord has raised up a
people for his name, from so small a commencement,
my heart is filled with joy.

From Belleville I was sent to Herman mission,
Missouri. Here we had some gracious revivals ; and
I will only mention one incident, among many, that
shows the power of divine grace in the awakening
and conversion of sinners. While I was holding a
two days' meeting a man in the neighborhood, who
had an only daughter whom the father idolized, said
to her, " The Methodists have a meeting in our neigh-
borhood to-day ; let us go over and see some fun."
So he saddled the horses, and off they rode. On the
way the father said to his daughter, " We ought to
have put on wooden shoes to-day, so that when the
Methodists begin to roll around over the benches we
might help to make music for them." They arrived,
and I commenced preaching. In the afternoon I
preached again. The power of the Lord came down,
and his daughter, with a number of others, was soon
at the altar of prayer, crying for mercy. The father
approached to take away his daughter by force ; but
a brother told him not to do it, and that if he would
go to destruction himself, to let his daughter alone
to seek her salvation. The daughter was converted
that day ; and when she arose, she ran to her father
and threw her arms around his neck and exclaimed,
" Father ! father ! repent and be converted, or you
will be lost forever." The father stood as if paralyzed
before her, and was deeply awakened to see his lost
condition. Eight days afterward he came twenty
miles to hear me preach, and was much distressed on
account of his sins ; but he, too, obtained pardon.

JOHN A. KLEIN. 193

I have had many a joyful hour in God's service, and
I am fully determined to continue in this work. May
the Lord keep me faithful, and let me finally obtain
an inheritance at his right hand !

EXPERIENCE OF JOHN A. KLEIN.

I was born and brought up in the grand duchy of
Baden, Germany, and in 1837, in my fifteenth year,
I came with my parents to America, and settled in
Sandusky county, Ohio. Through the teaching and
customs of our country I was a member of the Lu-
theran Church. After my confirmation and taking
the sacrament of the Lord's supper I considered my-
self a Christian, and believed I was as good as the
most who are made Christians in this way. But to-
day it makes me shudder when I think of the solemn
vows we had to make in the presence of a large as-
sembly to renounce the devil and all his works, and
declare our purpose to serve God all the days of
our lives, loving him with the whole heart, and our
neighbor as ourselves. My heart was not much
affected, and I was' glad when the hour of confirma-
tion was over, but rejoiced that I had passed my
catechetical instruction, and was now free from the
tyrannical and overbearing teacher who had trained
me. I was glad, also, that now, according to the cus-
toms of our country, I had liberty to go out into the
world, and indulge in all kinds of worldly pleasures
and amusements; yet I went to Church at stated
times, and took the sacrament of the Lord's supper.
My parents told me I was a Christian; but with all
this I was daily sinking deeper and deeper in sin,
and became very active in the service of my master,

17

194 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

the devil, and was little concerned about the salva-
tion of my soul. When at times my conscience
waked up to reprove me I would comfort myself with
the reflection that I had been baptized and taken
the sacrament. In this Avay I went with open eyes,
instructed by the holy Scriptures, toward destruction,
till my eighteenth year.

At this time I lived in Maumee City, Ohio, where
the Methodists and Presbyterians held a protracted
meeting. I attended the meetings daily, but could
not understand much of what was said; yet the
power of the Lord accompanied the word preached,
and I was awakened to see my lost condition. I
went to the altar of prayer with the determination
to give God my heart, and in some measure was re-
lieved ; but I had no one to teach me in my mother
tongue, and the English I did not understand sufii-
ciently to derive much benefit from it. I joined the
Methodist Episcopal Church; but now a storm of
persecution commenced against me on the part of my
parents and other Germans, and they did all in their
power to bring me back to. my sinful habits. My
father took me away to work on the canal, eighteen
miles from the city, with the view of getting me away
from Methodist associations. Here I was surrounded
with the ungodly and profane — heard nothing of God's
word, but profanation and blasphemy ; and, having
myself not as yet a clear evidence of my acceptance
with God, I gradually became indifferent, and neg-
lected to pray. Ignorant of the means of grace, and
having no encouragement from any pious person, it
is no wonder that I yielded to temptation and again
mingled with the profane and ungodly crowd. My

JOHN A. KLEIN. 196

conscience often reproved me, but I grew harder and
more disposed to indulge in worldly pleasure till I
was again wholly given up to the service of the ad-
versary. Indeed, my condition was worse than be-
fore ; for I became an enemy to all good people, and
commenced to persecute and speak against the Meth-
odists. I was once more a zealous Lutheran, and
used every opportunity to persecute the Methodists.
And in this opposition the Lutheran preacher and his
Avhole congregation joined me.

I now went to Methodist meetings with a view of
persecuting the pious, and finding fault, and disturb-
ing them in their devotions. This I did in ignorance
and unbelief; but the Spirit of God would at times
work powerfully upon my heart, reproving me for my
sins, and sometimes it appeared to me that an audi-
ble voice spoke to me, and told me I was wrong, and
that I should not persecute the people of God. I
sometimes felt that if I did not turn from my evil
ways I would be lost. But when I asked the ques-
tion, what must I do? the answer came, you must
forsake your wicked associations and be willing to
forsake all for Christ and for the glory of his cause.
So strong were these impressions at one time, that
I thought if 1 did not then resolve to turn to God I
would be ultimately lost. I formed the resolution to
repent of my sins, and began earnestly to read God's
word and meditate upon its truths. It told me that
I must be holy if I would see God in peace. I felt
that I was unholy, carnally sold under sin, and unfit
for the presence of a holy God and the society of
the blessed. I went to a pious Methodist neighbor,
two miles from my father's residence, who exhorted

196 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

me to pray and seek earnestly for the salvation of
my soul, and invited me to come to prayer meeting
at his house. This I did, and was then informed
that in three weeks there would be a German Meth-
odist preacher there by the name of Riemenschneider.
These three weeks was a time of mingled emotions
of sorrow and of joy. I was sorry that I had gone
so far from my Savior and was an unforgiven sinner,
and joyful to think that God in his mercy had again
waked me up to see my lost condition, and that there
was yet mercy for me. I longed to see the arrival
of brother Riemenschneider; and, as I looked for
him at the appointed hour, my heart was filled with
joy to see him. When he came to the house I ex-
tended my hand, and as he took it I felt as though a
dagger went through my heart. I said within myself,
" 0, Lord, let this be the day of my deliverance !"
Under the singing, prayer, and preaching I was
deeply affected, and felt as though all the exercises
were adapted to my case. The word appeared as a
hammer to break my heart of stone, and as having a
power to kill and make alive. Under the sermon so
deeply was I affected that I could not contain myself,
but wept and sobbed, and finally cried aloud for
mercy. I arose in the congregation while the
preacher was yet speaking, and asked the members
to pray for me. The whole congregation were in
tears, and they all kneeled down and prayed that God
might show his mercy to me. Here I lay as a poor,
helpless, condemned sinner. The enemy of my soul
tempted me to believe that I had sinned away my
day of grace, and that there was no mercy for me;
and while I thought of this I cried to the Lord, " Is

JOHN A. KLEIN. 197

there no mercy for me ? then let me die at the feet of
mercy.'" At this moment I remembered these words,
"Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the
sins of the world." If Jesus taketh away the sins
of the world, thought I, he will surely take away
mine, however great they may be. The Spirit of
God still drew me nearer to the cross, and as I thus
looked up with confidence to my blessed Savior my
load of sins was suddenly rolled from me, and my
heart was filled with the divine love. There was now
no condemnation. I felt that I was a child of God
and an heir of heaven. It appeared to me that
heaven had come to my heart, and I arose and
praised God for his mercy to me.

This was on the 8th of April, in the year 1843.
When I came home my mother said to me, "You
look just as if you had got out of prison." I an-
swered, "You have guessed it well, for about two
hours ago my Savior delivered me from the bondage
of sin, and I am now free." Both of my parents
began to persecute me so much that I was compelled
to leave home for Christ's sake. Yet, thanks be to
God, who hears the prayers of his children, within
five months my father and three of my brothers were
converted to God, and soon afterward my mother was
converted, so that I returned to my father's house
and again worked for him.

Not long after my conversion I felt a deep concern
for the salvation of my countrymen, and especially
when I saw their darkness and ignorance. I felt a
strong desire to call sinners to repentance, and was
appointed class-leader. This for a short time quieted
my mind; but my desire was soon increased to do

198 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

more, and to go out and seek those who were going
astray from Christ. When I thought how dark and
ignorant my own mind had been, I felt an especial de-
sire to do something for them, and was willing to
devote my whole life and all my powers of soul and
body to this work.

In 1845, two years after my conversion, I was
called on to go out and labor in the Lord's vineyard.
After close self-examination and prayer I determined
to follow the openings of Providence and the call
of the Church. In God's name I went, and while
laboring in tliis cause I have seen many souls con-
verted and brought to Christ. The thought of re-
tiring from the regular work of a Methodist preacher
makes me sad. May the Lord give me grace still to
labor for him !

LEWIS NIPPER T. 199

CHAPTER XV.

LEWIS NIPPERT — PHILIP KUHL.

EXPERIENCE OF LEWIS NIPPERT.

It had never been my intention to write any thing
about myself; but, according to the request of Dr.
Miller, I will briefly, and as precisely as possible,
state a few things of my short history.

I was born the 23d of May, 1825, in Germany. In
the year 1830 my parents, with their three children,
of which I was the oldest, moved to America, and
settled in Belmont county, Ohio, in a German settle-
ment. Here their whole attention was directed to the
things of this world, and they appeared to think but
little of the salvation of their souls. On the SabT
bath, in the forenoon, they went to the Lutheran
Church, to which they belonged ; and the afternoon
was spent in visiting, hunting, or going to the- tavern.
In these pastimes the minister not unfrequently took
part, and with the members of his Church emptied
the glass, and often went staggering to his house.

Once a year it was customary to go to the sacra-
ment, with a view there to obtain the pardon of sin
and a reconciliation to God. Of true experimental
religion there was nothing said, much less possessed.
I knew of none among those Germans who lived there
that were acquainted with the power of religion. It
was " a valley of dry bones." In this condition the

200 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

German Methodist preachers found us when, in 1837,
they came among us to preach repentance, faith, and
conversion. Some were aAvakened and converted, and
joined the Church, and commenced to lead a new life.
This waked up the Lutheran Church, and they saw
that unless they obtained another preacher, the Meth-
odists would take from them all their people. They
dismissed their preacher and called another, who now
entered the field with all his might against the Meth-
odists, and warned his people to be on their guard
against the false prophets. He often visited my
parents, for my father was an elder in his Church,
and warned them with all earnestness against the
Methodists, as deceivers and enthusiasts, and to go to
them would be nothing less than to renounce the faith
of their fathers. But his arm was too feeble to stop
the work of the Lord. One after another was con-
verted, among whom were some of our relations.
These came to my parents and told them what they
had experienced in their hearts, and exhorted them
also to seek their salvation. But the prejudice of my
parents was so great that they did not wish to hear
any thing from them.

The Testament — for we had no Bible — and a vol-
ume of sermons were now faithfully examined, and
every passage that spoke of deceivers and false
prophets carefully marked ; and when the Methodists
came, these passages Avere shown them, and they were
told that they were the persons spoken of; and often
half the night Avas spent in conversations on religion.
The more they conversed A\'ith Methodists, the more]
were they convinced and made uneasy. Finally, they
were fully convinced of their lost condition, and saw

LEWIS NIPPERT. 201

their dangerous state. Still they were not willing to
trust the Methodists fully ; however, the Lord directed
all to his glory. Brother E. Riemenschneider held a
meeting in 1839, one mile from our house, in the
evening. My mother attended this meeting. After
midnight we all went to bed, though she had not yet
returned. About two o'clock she came, and, having
awakened us, told us that the Lord had pardoned her
sins, that she felt an inexpressible joy in her soul,
and that now she firmly believed the Methodists to be
the people of God. My father now fell into a deep
godly sorrow, and could not rest day nor night. He
often went five miles over bad roads to attend the
Methodist meeting, and seek the prayers of the
Church. Finally, after three months seeking in this
way, the Lord had mercy on him and blessed him
also.

As I grew up I was very wild, and possessed of a
bad disposition. I spent the Sabbath in sinful pleas-
ures, thus laying a dangerous foundation for the fu-
ture. Had not God delivered me, I might perhaps
at this time be in perdition. I drank in the preju-
dices previously possessed by my parents against the
Methodists. The preacher who catechised and in-
structed us endeavored to fill our minds with prejudice
against the Methodists. I hated them from my heart,
because I believed they were bad people. I was dis-
pleased when my parents were converted, and could
not bear to be called a Methodist ; and if any of my
schoolmates called me by this name, I was immedi-
ately ready to fight. I continued to visit the preacher,
and was to be confirmed in a short time ; but God or-
dered it otherwise. In 1840, in the fifteenth year of

202 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

my ago, I was awakened under the preaching of
brother Riemenschneider. For two weeks I felt the
load of my sins heavy upon me. I wept and prayed,
and called upon the Lord in my distress, and often
went from eight to ten miles to Church. No weather
was too bad, and no difficulties too great. I desired
to have peace with God, cost what it would.

Finally, at a meeting where brother Riemen-
schneider was present, I was enabled to believe on
the Lord Jesus Christ, to the pardon of my sins.
what joy and happiness I experienced then! It was
a glorious hour, of which I hope to have a joyful
recollection in eternity.

Having examined and weighed the matter for my-
self, I joined the Methodist Episcopal Church, which
step I have never regretted. Several months after
my conversion I went to Cincinnati, where I learned
the art of printing, in the office of the Christian Apol-
ogist. During my stay there I attended closely to
my religious duties, and found my greatest joy in the
society of the children of God, and always felt un-
happy when I was detained from the house of the
Lord. I am under many obligations to the Sunday
school, in which I was first a scholar and afterward a
teacher. The faithful exhortations of brother Nast
made a deep impression on my mind. Also the
brethren, Adam Miller and William Ahrens, who had
charge of the mission in Cincinnati during my stay
there, did not neglect the lambs of the flock. With
fear and trembling I took charge of a class in my
seventeenth year. It was a heavy cross for me, but
the Lord helped me to bear it. When my four years
of apprenticeship had passed, I remained some time

PHILIP KUHL. '20Z

in Cincinnati, and then visited my parents, witli wliom
I staid a year. I then returned to Cincinnati, with a
view to work at my trade.

I had often felt that it was my duty to devote my-
self wholly to the work of the Lord. When I arrived
at Cincinnati I went to brother Nast, who told me that
he believed it was not the will of God that I should
be setting these dead letters, but to be sending living
epistles into the world, and added, "I believe the
Lord will employ you in his vineyard." This was
quite unexpected to me, and I began to make some
objections. He and brother Doering advised me to
return home and await the leadings of Providence.
After a severe conflict of mind I followed their ad-
vice. The brethren in the Monroe mission gave me
license to preach. I continued to see more clearly
what was the will of the Lord concerning me, and re-
solved to give myself wholly to his service. In 1846
I was received into the Ohio conference, and have
reason to believe that so far my labor has not been
altogether in vain in the Lord. It requires a great
deal of sacrifice to be a German missionary ; but, by
the help and grace of God, I am willing to live and
die in this work.

Note.— Brother Nippert was sent as a missionary to Germany
about eight years ago. He was supported there for several years by
the Sabbath school of Morris Chapel charge, in Cincinnati. He has
labored faithfully and successfully, and has been the means of lead-
ing many of the German children in his natire land to the Sabbath
school.

EXPEKIENCE OF PHILIP KUHL.

I was born in the village of Bindsachsen, district
of Budingen, grand duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt, on the

204 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

ITtli of March, 1814. My parents, who were mem-
bers of the Reformed Church, kept me constantly at
school, and brought me up in the fear of God as well
a,s they knew how. I went to different schools till I
was sixteen years of age, and during that time lived
a retired life. After I had left my parental home I
became very wild, and found my happiness in noth-
ing but merry-making and the dance. But with all
that I thought myself a good Christian, and firmly
believed that if any one would reach heaven I would.
On the 25th of May, 1834, 1 left the father-land with
my parents to go to America. Till then I had
never heard of a religion of the heart; all the
religion of the preachers as well as of the people
consisted in some outward formalities of the Christian
religion, which appeared fair to the eyes. I became
acquainted with only four or five persons in Germany
who, as 1 now believe, had been converted to God.
On the first of August we landed at Baltimore, but
moved thence to Zanesville, Ohio, where I often went
to the German church, but without the least idea that
I ought to be converted.

On account of some business I went to Frankfort,
Kentucky, and thence first to Louisville and afterward
to New Orleans. Here I obtained, in the spring
of 1836, a situation as surveyor, in which capac-
ity I assisted in the location of a railroad from Port
Hudson to Clinton and Jackson, Louisiana. While I
was thus engaged I made much money, but at the
same time sank deeper and deeper into the whirlpool
of ruin. Alas ! if God had not held me back I would
have been lost forever. I was very near to absolute
infidelity ; only those impressions of the truth of the

PHILIP KUHL. 205

Christian religion ■which I had received in childhood I
could not get rid of. At last an uneasiness which
would not let me stay seized upon my mind, and no
amount of money could have prevailed upon me to
remain in that society. In August, of the same year,
I visited my parents, brothers, and sisters, who, in the
mean time, had removed to Beardstown, Illinois, and
Avas providentially hindered from returning to Lou-
isiana. During my stay I went from time to time to
hear the German Evangelical ministers preach, and
took great pains to find a good congregation ; but not
one of those preachers told me that I must be con-
verted.

In the spring of 1841 I became neighbor to a
watchmaker, by the name of Heminghaus, whom I
had always disliked most cordially, and whom by way
of contempt, behind his back, I used to call the "Low
Dutch saint," because he frequently held prayer and
other religious meetings with his wife and three more
Germans. I endeavored to find something that might
justify the prejudice I cherished against him; yet I
experienced from him nothing but that love which one
neighbor manifests to another. At last he com-
menced to visit me. Once on leaving he pulled a
book out of his pocket — it was the Evangelical Or-
dinance of Grace — and requested me to read it. I
promised to do so, and went immediately at it. Then
it was that God opened my eyes ; it was as if scales
had fallen from them. I saw clearly that I could not
stand thus before God. I began to pray that the
Lord would direct and help me to save my soul. All
this was done in secret, for I did not want any one to
know what was the matter with me. I was resolved

206 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

not to rest till I knew that God had pardoned my
sins, for I knew of no greater treasure than this. At
last, after a conflict that had lasted for weeks, my
load grew so heavy that I did not know what to do. I
disclosed, therefore, my feelings to my dear wife. She
began to weep bitterly, and expressed her confidence
that both of us were certainly good enough to get to
heaven; at the same time she was afraid that my
mind might become disordered. This, however, caused
me no uneasiness. All that night I cried and prayed
till, Avhen day began to dawn, the thought came up in
my mind, " The light of the day has appeared again,
but in thy soul there is still the darkness of night."
Just then the day-star arose in my heart, the load of
sin was taken away, and rest, peace, and joy came
into my soul. 0, how happy I was !

But the enemy immediately tempted me, and whis-
pered to keep quiet and not tell others of this. For
some time he succeeded, and had almost deprived me
of my sweet peace. This took place in the first half
of November, 1841. On Christmas of the same year
I went with my father, who had been awakened, for
the first time, to the so-called " Low Dutch meeting."
Great was the joy among the five children of God
who were assembled there. At the conclusion of the
meeting I offered my house — since it contained the
most room — for the weekly meetings, where they con-
tinued to be held for a number of years. From this
time on my peace increased, and also persecutions
and conflicts Avithin and without, but the Lord helped
me out of them all. Although I understood but very
little of the English language, yet I went to the
meetings of the English Methodists, where I always

i

PHILIP KUHL. 207

felt liappy, and was abundantly blessed. At that
time there were but few German Methodists in Amer-
ica. The first German Methodist preacher that ever
came to the state of Illinois had just begun a mission
in St. Clair county, but this was more than one hun-
dred miles distant from us. In February, 1842, I
became a subscriber to the " Christian Apologist,"
which has been a dear friend to my family ever since,
and will remain so as long as I live. By means of
this paper I became intimately acquainted with the
doctrines and usages of the Methodist Church.

At last, in the month of August, 1842, after we
had been reviled most shamefully, both in the
pulpit and out of it, the Lord brought it about
that the only Methodist preacher in the state paid
us a visit, when nine of us — inclusive of my eldest
brother and his wife — resolved to unite with the
Methodist Church. 0, happy resolution, of which
I never yet have repented, and I never shall ! I
used to pray night and day, that the Lord would
direct me aright, and preserve me from taking any
step which might bring down his displeasure upon
me. When I joined the Methodist Church the Lord
granted me such strength that nothing could have
prevented me from saying, " I will choose rather to
suffer affliction with the people of God, than enjoy
the pleasures of sin for a season." We remained in
the English Methodist Church for two years, as there
was a great lack of German preachers ; but we held
our prayer and class meetings in German, brother
Heminghaus being our leader.

Till the winter of 1844 I never had any thought
of becoming a preacher, although I oftentimes had

L08 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

felt as though I should like to bring all the world to
Christ. It happened some time during this winter
that I fell into conversation with a Cumberland
Presbyterian preacher by the name of Downing,
during which he suddenly said : " Brother Kuhl, I
believe it is your duty to preach the Gospel to your
German countrymen." I replied: "I can not do this,
I am not capable, and I do not know how." He con-
tinued : " I have often resolved to tell you that I
think it your duty to preach, and never found a favor-
able opportunity ; now, however, I will discharge this
duty by telling you that you must do it." These
words did not then take hold of my heart. A few
moments after this conversation I hastened home
to supper, in order to go in the evening and hear that
good man preach. The evening preceding this one
I commenced reading the biography of a noble Ger-
man lady, who spent all her life and property in the
service of God, but I became sleepy and put the book
aside. Having reached home I spent the few mo-
ments employed by my wife in setting the table in
reading. Being curious to know what followed next
after what I had read, I opened the book, and found
that it was the question propounded to the lady,
" What a preacher should do, if he had to preach and
did not know what he should say?" Her answer
was : " Let him go to Him who gave words to Ba-
laam's ass, and he will furnish them to a preacher
also." It struck me like a thunder-clap that it was
my duty to preach. This conviction became stronger
and stronger. Brother Jacoby, by a sermon on the
text, " Thy kingdom come," poured oil upon the fire
which was raging in my breast. 0, what anguish

I

PHILIP KUHL. 209

and terror filled my breast, and how often did my
cries ascend to God, to give me light and direction in
this to me all-important affair !

In the month of June, 1844, I received license
to exhort, and in the fall brother Heminghaus was
received into conference and sent to Mascoutah.
Brother Peter Wilkins was sent to us as the first
German preacher, and the work soon began to spread,
more souls being converted one after another. In
February, 1845, 1 was granted license to preach, and
in May, when brother Wilkins, on account of ill-health,
had to return to Ohio, brother Jacoby confided the
mission to me. I labored in great feebleness on the
Beardstown mission from May to September. Dur-
ing this time eight souls were converted and thirteen
united with us. This strengthened my faith very
much, and was beneficial for me in later conflicts.
By the conference which held its session at Spring-
field I was sent to the Columbus-Street charge, St.
Louis. Through the grace of God it was compara-
tively an easy task for me to bid farewell to a com-
fortable home and to flattering prospects for the
future; for I had counted the cost very often, and
the words, " Woe is unto me, if I preach not the Gos-
pel," sounded too loud in my ears to be disregarded
on any account. But it was very hard for my dear
wife to tear herself loose ; the Lord, however, grant-
ed her strength also, and she too took part in the call
of the Lord.

Full of fears and misgivings, but trusting in the
Lord, I began my labor in the field to which I had
been appointed. It was " full of dead men's bones."
Two years full of troubles, conflicts, and cares rolled

18

210 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

round very swiftly; but in them a church was built,
ninety-one persons were received into membership,
and a hundred souls, among which were many Cath-
olics, were converted. A merciful God had preserved
us from domestic cares. My second year in this
charge was a succession of the severest inward con-
flicts. I never either before or afterward had to
suffer so much. The enemy seemed determined to
thrust me out of the work, even suggesting that it
was so exalted and divine that I was not fit for it.
But the Lord ever stood by me, and at last command-
ed the roaring billows to be still. Then there was
a great calm, and there is yet a great calm.

The conference of 1847 appointed me to Wash-
Street charge, St. Louis. The Lord blessed my labors
during these two years by the conversion of more
than three hundred souls; during the first year a
hundred and ninety, and during the second a hundred
and twenty-five united with the Church on probation.
The second year, when the cholera was raging fear-
fully all around us, thirty-eight of my beloved flock
were carried ofi". But God preserved both me and
mine, and helped me to remain at my post day and
night, with the exception of two or three days, and
to point many a dying soul to the Lamb of God.
Numbers of them found peace in their last hours.

The conference held at Quincy in 1849, appointed
me presiding elder for the St. Louis district. In this
capacity I labored there for three years, and the good
Lord helped us to achieve great victories. Then the
district was divided into the St. Louis and Belleville
districts, with two presiding elders. In 1852 I re-
ceived for my field of labor the Missouri district,

PHILIP KUIIL. 211

whicli, during the first year, embraced all the territory
from St. Charles up the Missouri river to Kansas,
Nebraska, and Iowa ; during the second year it com-
menced with JeflFerson City. These two years were
blessed years for my soul and for the work. About
five hundred souls were converted, and the work was
extended in all directions.

I was sent to the Quincy district by the conference
of 1854. It contained at that time eleven fields of
labor and eight hundred members, which increased
during the three years of my connection with it to
twenty-three fields and seventeen hundred members.

The conference of 1857 divided the Quincy district
into the Quincy and Beardstown districts, of which I
received the one embracing Beardstown. I have just
finished my first year on this district. The Lord has
thus far been with us and that to bless, and my soul
feels happy in his service. My soul and body, time
and gifts, are the Lord's, and I am resolved, by his
grace assisting me, to spend my life in his service.

^

212 GERMAN MISSIONARIES,

CHAPTER XVI.

EXPERIENCE OP JOHN BIER.

I WAS born in the year 1819; was baptized and
became a member of the Reformed Church while yet
an infant. I was sent to school when I was six years
old, and continued to go till I was fifteen. During
this time many aspirations after the good filled my
tender heart. I formed many excellent resolutions
to live for God and his holy religion ; but, I am sorry
to say, these feelings and resolutions disappeared
imperceptibly in the course of time Avithout having
been put into execution. The years of schooling and
childhood passed quickly by, the day for confirmation
approached, and I resolved again most solemnly fi-om
the hour of confirmation to live for God and his holy
religion. As the young people were accustomed to
celebrate the day of their confirmation with dancing,
ijI^ playing, etc., I determined to feign sickness Us soon
as the ceremony of confirmation was over, in order
not to engage with them in those wicked things which
the Lord hates. But, alas, what blindness! In
the first place, I intended to serve God in my own
strength; and, secondly, I determined to tell a lie
in order to escape being drawn into that which was
sinful. Confirmation was over, and with it every
good feeling and resolution left me. With eager
steps I made haste to enjoy myself and seek pleas-

JOHNBIEE. ^ 213

ure and happiness in the perishable things of this
world. Conscience often smote me; but I did against
my better judgment that which displeased God, and
hastened toward hell on the rapid stream of vanity.

When seventeen years of age I came with my
parents to this country, and settled in Pittsburg,
Pennsylvania. Here too I lived in youthful levity,
although I was still a member of the Reformed
Church, till, while walking through the city on a winter
evening in the year 1837, I accidentally passed the
Methodist meeting-house. Persons of all ages were
standing at the windows deriding and laughing at
those in the house. Upon my inquiry as to what was
going on — for I thought it strange that there should
be mocking and derision at such a sacred place — I
was told there was a woman in the church who wanted
to be married, and a great many of the congregation
wanted to marry her, and that they were now quar-
reling about her. Curiosity led me into the church.
I saw there a woman kneeling at the altar, and heard
a man praying to God apparently with much ardor
and sincerity. "Ah!" said I to myself, "these peo-
ple must be of God, for they are singing and pray-
ing; and those their mockers must be of the devil."
The fear of God came upon me, and I again resolved
to serve God with my whole heart. I took such lik-
ing to these praying persons that, if they had been
Germans, I would have joined them on the spot.
Nevertheless, I continued as I had been before.

In the year 1838 brother Nast came to Pittsburg,
in order to gather a German Methodist society. My
parents went to these meetings, and compelled me to
go also. I was very much pleased with the religious

214 GERMAN MISSIONARIES,

exercises, but my heart was so full of the spirit of
this world that as soon as I had left the house of
God I was found where there Avas music and dancing.
In these places I was generally a looker-on, with a
disquieted heart and an upbraiding conscience. I
resolved repeatedly never to go again, and kept this
resolution for a good while ; but at the same time I
went not to church. The news at last came that my
parents and one of my brothers had united with the
Methodist Church. At first I felt indignantly sur-
prised at such a step on their part; but my com-
posure returned when the thought suggested itself to
my mind that every one must act for himself. Soon
after this I learned that they had been converted.
This intelligence caused me much joy. One evening
I went with a comrade to the school-house, where
brother Nast was preaching; curiosity to know who
were there induced me to go in. Among other
things, brother Nast said that if every one of his
audience had all the sins which he had committed
during his lifetime written on his back, so that they
could be read by all, with what shame would he
not hurry out of the house! "But remember," con-
tinued he, " that on the day of final judgment all
things will be made manifest," etc. I left the build-
ing in deep study over what I had heard. When we
had proceeded a considerable distance from the house
my comrade remarked, "Listen how that Methodist
halloos !" I answered, "Yes." Scarcely had I ut-
tered yes, when I seemed to hear a call from God,
" Be converted !" But I resisted God's Spirit. One
evening when I was in the midst of a frivolous crowd
the Methodists became the topic of conversation.

i

JOHN BIER. 215

One said this, another that, against these praying
people, all of which was false and unfounded. When
I was pointed out as the one who would soon become a
Methodist, I replied that, even if all the inhabitants of
Pittsburg should turn Methodists I would not become
one. We also took counsel together in what dancing
saloon we should spend New-Year's night. While
we were conversing in this manner prayer was offered
up in our behalf unknown to us.

Next morning my dear mother came to me, ex-
horted me to fear God, showed the necessity of spirit-
ual regeneration, and invited me to come to their
meeting. This I promised to do, and went there the
same night. I was much interested by the singing,
praying, and preaching. At the close the preacher,
brother Hartman, invited those who repented of their
sins to come forward, kneel down at the altar, and en-
gage in prayer. At once the altar was surrounded
with those that were crying to God for mercy. He
came to where I was sitting, and, addressing me, said,
"Dear young man, do n't you wish to be converted
to your God while you are yet young? Behold, now
is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation for
you. Come go with me to the altar and consent to
be prayed for." He took me by the hand. I fol-
lowed him and kneeled down. While on my knees,
surrounded by floods of penitential tears and fervent
prayers, the tempter approached and whispered to
me that it would be better for me to slip away
through the aisle, unperceived by any one, and leave
the house. Nothing but the reflection, what Avill my
parents, what will the preacher think of me if I
should do so? prevented me. In the same manner

216 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

Satan tempted me twice again, but still more griev-
ously than the first time. But I resisted him. Then
the suggestion came into my mind, what will such and
such persons say when they learn that I have been
kneeling here? At last I resolved, I will remain,
come what may; I have to look out for myself; I
have a soul to save. I commenced then to pray,
" Lord, give me understanding, enlighten me by thy
Spirit, convert me, and I shall be converted indeed."
I continued in fervent prayer till about eleven o'clock
at night. My sins by this time had become an intol-
erable load; but it seemed as though God would not
hear such a sinner as I was. However, I went
home praying — laid myself down praying, and lit-
erally flooded the bed Avith bitter tears. I arose very
sad next morning. Every thing I looked upon
seemed to mourn with me, and I went about bowed
down in spirit. A prayer meeting was held at my
father's that afternoon, but when I looked at the
people the thought came over me, I am the most mis-
erable, not only of those here assembled, but of all
men. When the first prayer was offered up the
power of God overshadowed me to such a degree
that, like Saul, I fell to the ground. The record of
my sins was opened before me; all the iniquities of
my life passed in review before me; conscience tor-
tured me dreadfully ; and yet I had to say yea and
amen to all its accusations. "Lord, I have deserved
thy displeasure and wrath, but Jesus died for me.'"'
Thus I presented Jesus as my surety; but with no
pen can I describe how my soul trembled within me
and what my poor heart suffered.

After I had wrestled with God in prayer for three

JOHN BIER. 217

hours, my day of grace began to dawn. I felt the
gentle breezes of the Spirit of God in my soul ; the
voice of the Holy Ghost was heard in my heart, say-
ing, " Son, all thy sins are forgiven thee ;" and the
love of God was poured in copious streams into my
soul. Rejoicing, I could shout and sing. Would that
I could describe the joy that I felt when my soul was
born again of God ! I was sure of the heavenly
vision ; I knew what had been bestowed upon me by
the Lord. All men in the world — nay, even hell
itself — could not have made me believe that I had not
received pardon for my sins; for the Spii'it of God
bore witness with my spirit that I was a child of God.
I experienced this blessed change of heart on the
29th of December, 1838, at six o'clock at night.
When I was called to supper, I felt neither hunger
nor thirst. Full of joy I hastened to the evening
meeting, and 0, blessed night, my soul was perfectly
overwhelmed, so that for joy in the Holy Ghost I
knew not what to do ; I was intoxicated with the rich
mercies of heaven. That evening eight souls were
delivered into the glorious liberty of the children of
God.

The report that I, too, had become a Methodist
spread through the city. I commenced then to tell
my comrades what the Lord had done for my soul.
Some wondered at my words, others derided them,
and still others put me in mind of what I had said
not long before. A few, however, believed every thing
I told them ; and, in this manner, it came to pass that
those who heard me began to dispute over the words
which I addressed to them. The Lord blessed my

labors, so that those who before had been engaged

19

218 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

with me in the vanities of this world, now began to
serve God with me. I felt an irresistible call to de-
vote myself to the ministry and the work of God;
but it seemed to me to be too great and glorious an
undertaking. It was for this reason that I told no one
of the call of God's Spirit within me. Let me here
remark that I had already felt, in early childhood, a
great desire and longing to become a missionary, in
order to proclaim the Savior of mankind to those who
were ignorant of him. Shortly after my conversion
I was made class-leader, much against my will. I put
in my great youth as a plea, but it availed me noth-
ing. The preacher confided to me a class five miles
from the city. I pursued my way thither on foot,
praying with a heavy heart, and a soul bowed down
with anguish ; but, behold, the members of the class
received me Avith open arms of love. I must say it
was a heavy cross for me to exhort fathers and
mothers ; but I commenced in the name of God.
Slavish fear disappeared. I began to exhort, to con-
sole, and to give advice according to the nature of the
confession. We had blessed times, and sinners were
awakened and converted to God. A short time
afterward I received license to exhort, from brother
Swahlen.

I would like to relate in this place a strange occur-
rence. When I was exhorter our minister called upon
me to accompany him on a missionary tour ; I con-
sented, and we started upon our journey on foot, in
the month of April. It fared pretty hard with me on
this my first missionary journey : in the first place, I
was not used to travel on foot ; secondly, we could
get nothing to eat, and hardly a place for lodging ;

i

JOHN BIER. 219

thirdly, I fell sick ; and, fourthly, we got lost in the
wilderness. At last, after three days' hard travel, we
arrived at the place of our destination. Our country-
men received us kindly. Brother H. preached once,
and then left this wild region. I Avas invited to stay
some days, in order to hold prayer meetings, which I
did. One very clear moonlight' evening Ave went to
the house of our nearest neighbor to hold there a
prayer meeting. I distrusted the dilapidated build-
ing, and did not like to go in. The people assembled ;
I read a portion of the word of God by the light of a
wood-fire, after which we sang. While we Avere kneel-
ing around the fire and engaged in prayer, the chim-
ney, which was made of brick, tumbled down, together
with one-half of the house. It was a perfect miracle
that no one Avas hurt. The ruins were cleared aAvay,
I mounted the heap, commenced to speak, the power
of God came down upon us, and a general awakening
was the consequence.

Oftentimes the brethren would turn the conversa-
tion upon the calling of ministers, in order to learn
Avhether I did not feel an inward call to the ministry.
But I disclosed nothing of the desire of my heart ;
till at last, one evening, brother Callender, with whom
I went home after meeting, called upon me to tell
him, before God and my own conscience, whether I
had not a call from God to go out and preach the
Gospel to my German countrymen. He reminded me
of the consequences of disobedience and resistance.
I felt that I was caught. I therefore opened my heart
to him, and he enjoined me to resist no longer, but to
follow the gracious guidance of God. Shortly after
this I was recommended to the quarterly conference

220 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

for license to preach. "When the recommendation
was read out I began to tremble and shake, and being
called upon to withdraw, in order that the brethren
might deliberate upon it, I besought the Lord that he
would frustrate their design. But this time my prayer
remained unheard. Having been called in, the pre-
siding elder, brother M. C. Henderson, informed me
that the members of the quarterly conference had re-
solved to grant me license. Immediately after this
calls to take the field, and work for the glory of God
and for the salvation of precious immortal souls, came
pouring in upon me from all quarters. On the 29th
of October I received license, and on the 15th of
November, taking leave of my dear ones, I left for
Maysville, Kentucky. Here I commenced, with much
fear and trembling, the labor which the Lord had laid
upon me ; but my efforts were blessed by Him, for
sinners were awakened and converted. We had to
suffer here most violent persecutions, of which I will
give only one instance. Lutherans and Catholics had
united, in order to stone us Methodists to death.
They broke the doors and windows of the building in
which we were assembled, and pursued us on our way
home with brickbats. One brother was struck so se-
verely on the breast by one of these missiles that he
fell down insensible, and was disabled from work for
a considerable time. The authors of these outrages
were delivered into the hands of justice. But it
would require too much room to relate my whole ex-
perience. I shall add, very briefly, only a few of the
more remarkable conversions.

In Williams county, Ohio, lived a man who was a
member of the Catholic Church, and who opposed the

JOHN BIER. 221

Methodists most violently. I invited him once to
come to our meetings; but he refused, saying that he
had no time, and that he would not go to a Methodist
meeting, even if five hundred oxen were pulling at
him. A few days after he came to our love-feast, not
one ox pulling at him. Several members of our
Church, who formerly had been Catholics, related the
history of their conversion. His heart was touched,
and his eyes ran over with tears. He staid to preach-
ing. During the sermon he felt as if he was in pur-
gatory; after preaching he came to the altar and
asked all God's children to pray for him; and, when
the services had concluded, he came to me and said:
"Brother Bier, if you think me worthy to become a
member of the Methodist Church I will give you now
my hand and my name, and shall try to give my whole
heart to God." He was received, and became a whole-
souled Christian.

In Perrysburg, Wood county, Ohio, a Catholic wo-
man was awakened and converted to God. This sis-
ter was persecuted very much. But when the priest
called at her house to expostulate with her, she told
him that she knew the Roman Catholic religion to be
false ; that she was now a Methodist, and would strive
to be a good Christian ; that he had better go home
then, and keep perfectly quiet. Many more Catholics
also were awakened and converted to God, and con-
fessed freely what Jesus had done for their souls.

There was a young man of about twenty-three
years of age, in Sandusky City, Ohio, a member of
the Lutheran Church, who used to protest most vio-
lently that he would not go to a Methodist meeting,
and that he Avould not be converted till the trees in

222 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

the forest had turned upside down; that is, struck
their tops into the ground and reared their roots aloft.
It was not long, however, before the Lord, by his
Spirit, commenced the work of grace in his heart ; he
came to our meetings, and wept and mourned on ac-
count of the load of his sins. He was converted and
joined our Church, but the trees have yet the same
position as in former times.

In the city lived an old man, an elder in the Lu-
theran Church, whose son, seventeen years of age,
was a praying Methodist. For this cause the father
drove him from his house. He took leave of parents,
brothers, and sisters, with the words, " I will pray for
you !" The Lord heard the prayer of the son. On
Sunday the father came to our Church, was awakened,
and, without being invited, came to the altar, begging
the congregation to pray for him as a poor sinner,
which request was acceded to on our part most gladly.
On the Sunday following the Lutheran minister de-
prived him of his office, and expelled him from his
Church, because he had once only been in the Meth-
odist meeting, and had requested to be prayed for.
This course on the part of the minister pleased the
old man very much; he took leave of the members of
the Lutheran Church and united with ours. Of course
his son was now allowed not only to return home, but
to go to meeting, to sing and to pray as much as he
pleased. The father and the whole family were con-
verted, and determined to love and to serve God.

0, Lord ! keep by thy grace all those whom thou
by thy Spirit hast called unto a new life, and manifest
thy judgments to those that have not yet known them!
Amen.

NICHOLAS NUHFER. 223

CHAPTER XVII.

N. NUHFER — J. H. EARTH.
EXPERIENCE OF NICHOLAS NTTHFER.

When I look back upon my past life I can not but ex.-
claim, with the Psalmist : "Bless the Lord, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits !" And so I will also
offer unto God thanksgiving, and declare his goodness
with a joyful heart.

I was born and brought up in the Roman Catholic
Church, and early instructed in its principles and its
usa2;es. The most that I learned of relicfion con-
sisted only in knowing how the ceremonies of the
Church were to be observed ; as how to kneel in pres-
ence of the priest, and with what kind of words to
address him in our approach to him ; how to sprinkle
ourselves with holy water when we went into the
church, and how to make the sign of the Cross ; how,
during the reading of mass, we were to be especially
attentive to the priest in order to fall upon our knees,
or rise to our feet, at an intimation from him; and,
also, at the proper time to repeat the prescribed forms
of prayer; how to conduct ourselves in the confes-
sional, and prostrate ourselves before him; and, what
is worse still, to call upon him for absolution from our
sins, confessing them in regular order, according to
number, name, and kind; and what could be merited
by good works, and how these good works could be

224 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

transferred to the account of our friends in purgatory ;
and "what especial service the departed saints could
render the pious on earth. These are some of the
superstitions of the Church. I lived after the cus-
toms and forms of the Romish Church, yet not so
scrupulously as many others. The reason of this
was I was very fond of reading, and I had good op-
portunities to do so, as my father had a large library ;
but the Bible, the best of all books, was not there.
My desire to read different works induced me, when
I visited other families, to take their books and read
them, and when I came to a Protestant family and
could find a Bible, I ahvays took it and read as long
as my time would allow me to do so. In this way I be-
came acquainted with God's word, and was convinced
that the religion in which I had been instructed was
not Scriptural, and therefore did not observe every
thing so punctiliously as I was directed.

After I reached my twentieth year I emigrated to
America. When I came here I availed myself of the i
liberty which this country offered me, and went to the
Protestant Church as often as to the Romish. Thus I
Avas more and more convinced of the errors of the
Romish Church, and formed the resolution to leave it,
and so I lived five years without being a member of
any Church, and cared very little about religion. I
occasionally heard a sermon, but went away without
thinking much about it. But, with gratitude to God,
I can say that he followed me by his restraining
grace, and I often felt condemnation in my own
heart, and often thought seriously on death and a
future judgment. But then Satan came with his
temptations, telling me that there was no danger,

NICHOLAS NUHFER. 225

though I was a sinner and deserved eternal punish-
ment. Yet I had done many good and meritorious
deeds; and so withal I comforted myself with the
mercy of God. In this way I lived some time.

But, through God's word and the operation of the
Holy Spirit, I was convinced that in this condition I
would finally be lost, and often formed the resolution
to repent. Now hear, dear reader, what I understood
by repentance : I believed that the only thing neces-
sary was to quit sinning and commence to live better.
Of evangelical repentance, which includes a true sor-
row for sin, I knew nothing. Much less could I have
a proper conception of a true faith, which apprehends
the merits of Christ and appropriates it to the peni-
tent soul, and still less of the great change that passes
upon the sinner when he is delivered from the bond-
age of sin, and has the love of God shed abroad in
his heart by the Holy Ghost sent to him. In a word,
I did not know what it was to be born again. As no
one can keep God's commandments, and lead a holy
life by his own resolutions and in his own strength,
so I could not, by constant effort, lead a better life
than I had led for some time past. Yet, instead of
making myself better, I became Avorse, and was
making rapid strides toward destruction. I soon
should have fallen into a worse condition if my mer-
ciful heavenly Father had not come to my rescue.
This he did; for, in the year 1842, brother Riemen-
Bchneider came into my neighborhood and gave out an
appointment to preach. He was the first German
Methodist preacher that came into that vicinity. I
went to hear him, and, in truth, I must confess that his
first sermon made a deeper impression on my mind

226 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

than any I had ever heard. After the third sermon
I was fully convinced of my lost condition, and saw
that in order to be saved it Avas not only necessary to
commence a new life, but that the sinner must obtain
pardon before he can be received into the fellowship
of the blessed and holy; and to obtain this the
preacher pointed me to the Savior of sinners — Jesus
Christ.

I began to pray in secret, but for some days I
feared to pray in public. Now learn, dear reader,
how I was induced to commence praying in public.
One day my old mother came to me, and as she saw
me she commenced to weep, and said to me, "Alas!
what is this that I hear of you?" "What, then?" I
asked. "Why, your brother-in-law and your sister
are going to turn Methodists, and they say you are
going too." I answered, " On this account you need
not weep; I am going to repent and turn to God, and
so will my brother-in-law and my sister." Hereupon
she replied, " I have heard that you intend to become
Methodists." "Yes," said I, "this may become
true." On this she wept more, and exclaimed in
great distress, "0, God, what shall I do? 0, Jesus,
0, Mary, 0, Joseph! what must I, an old woman,
yet live to see in my children? Alas! I have brought
up lambs, and now they all turn into wolves." I tried
to talk to her, and to explain to her the necessity of
repentance and conversion, but she interrupted me,
and told me that I must go to the priests, and to
make confession and obtain absolution if I wished to
amend my ways, and that I must not leave the Romish
Church. This, I told her, I had already done. She
replied, " Yes, and you have thus committed a mortal

NICHOLAS NUHFER. 227

sin." In the mean time my "wife prepared dinner;
and, as we sat down to it, my mother said in a taunt-
ing way, thinking to embarrass or annoy me, " Well, if
you are determined to be a Methodist you will have
to pray before you eat, for the Methodists are such
pious people they eat not without first praying; so
you shall now also pray before you can eat." I
replied, "Well, I will do this also." And this was
the first time I ever asked a blessing at my table.
Before we went to bed she commenced in the same
way, thinking, no doubt, to break me down, and said,
"The Methodists pray night and morning in the
family." I answered, "And I will do it too." And
this was my first family prayer. From that time out
I never neglected to ask a blessing at my table or to
pray in my family.

About this time there were a number of others in
our neighborhood who commenced seeking the Lord,
and I took one step after the other in the way of
life, and we all united in public prayer meetings, and
thus I commenced publicly to call upon God for
mercy. Now see in my case the fulfillment of the
apostle's words : " All things shall work together for
good to them that love God," or seek to follow him.
My mother sought to keep me from the Savior by
mocking and provoking me, but by this means I was
driven nearer to the Savior. Perhaps it might have
been some time before I could get along so far as
to pray in my family if my mother had not driven me
to it with her sneers and mockings. Before I pro-
ceed with my narrative I will only remark that my
mother was herself soon after converted to God.

Prom the time when I commenced earnestly to seek

228 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

for mercy I had to contend three weeks against un-
belief and the enemy of my soul. For when the
enemy saw that he could do nothing by comforting
me with the suggestion that I need not fear, that I
was not as great a sinner as many others, and that I
was in no danger, he began to attack me from an-
other direction, and said to me, " You need not look
for the pardon of your sins ; your heart is not suffi-
ciently broken up like the hearts of other penitents.
See how they can weep while your heart is stili
hard." And then he suggested again: "It is now
too late ; had you commenced immediately when you
discovered the errors of the Romish Church you
might have obtained mercy, but not now." Against
these assaults I constantly turned to God's word,
leaning upon the promises there recorded to poor
sinners, such as, "I have no pleasure in the death of
the sinner; turn ye and live; as I live, saith the
Lord, I have no pleasure in the death of the sinner,
but that he turn and live." These, with many other
similar promises, both in the Old and New Testae
ment, encouraged me.

But one morning I was severely tried. As I had
prayed in my family and went to my work, the
tempter came and led me into great darkness; so
that I almost despaired of ever having my prayers
answered. Unbelief pressed sore upon me, because
I had to seek so long and found no rest for my soul.
A voice seemed to whisper in my ear, "You can not
come in any other way than you have come; and why
has his mercy delayed so long? You are sorry for
your sins, and hate them with an intense hatred.
You have cast away all self-righteousness, and are

NICHOLAS NUHFER. 229

depending alone for mercy on tlie atonement of
Christ, You believe all the good promises of God's
word, and still you have not the peace of God in
your heart. It is not worth while to proceed any
further." How sad did I then feel — eternally lost
and no mercy for me ! My heart was ready to break
with anguish at the thought of being forever lost.
The world appeared to me like the valley of death.
"0, wretched man," I exclaimed, "who can help
me ?" I once more fell on my knees and wept and
prayed, and again resolved not to stop seeking till I
found mercy at the hand of God. At that moment
Jesus manifested himself to my soul, and the word
of comfort was spoken to me: "Be of good cheer:
thy sins are all forgiven." Love for my Savior filled
my heart, and gladly would I then have departed to
be with him. This was in April, 1842.

Soon after this brother Riemenschneider gave an op-
portunity to join the Church. I was among the first
that went forward to join, and in a short time I was
appointed class-leader. In this office I continued
four years, though I constantly felt myself urged to
preach the Gospel. But I was not willing to yield
to this impression, for the cross appeared too heavy
for me; neither did I open my mind on this subject
to any one, and I sometimes feared that I was
deceived. But as I could not get rid of this im-
pression I prayed earnestly to God that I might give
myself up unto him ; that if it was his will I should
preach his word the way might be opened for me
without any effort on my part. This was done, and
I have been permitted to see many of my countrymen
come from darkness to his glorious light. May the

230 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

Lord yet lead many thousands from the error of their
ways to a knowledge of his grace ! I have had many
a conflict since I started in this good work, but to the
glory of God's grace I can say that he has hitherto sus-
tained me, and I believe he will be with me to the end.

EXPERIENCE OF J. H. BARTH.

In the year 1821, on the 11th of March, I was
born in Hesse-Darmstadt. In my fourth year my
mother was taken from me by death. In my early
youth I felt something of the love of God, through
the religious instruction of my father. In 1831 my
father emigrated to America, with the view of freeing
his five sons, of which I was the youngest, from the
military conscription of Germany, and in this happy
country to secure to them an abundance of earthly
treasures. By our emigration I lost my good impres-
sions, notwithstanding good instructions were con-
tinued to me.

My father settled in Bedford, Pennsylvania, where
we remained five years. During this time I went
regularly to the English Sabbath school, and here I
obtained the greater part of my knowledge of Eng-
lish. While I read the Sabbath school books, and
especially those which gave an account of the lives of
good persons, I again had a strong desire to be pious ;
but, alas ! I never took a start in the good wa,y. This
was owing to a want of family prayer and proper
family influence, which I consider one of the best
means to lead the youth in the way to life. My
father prayed in secret, but not publicly in the family.

In the course of five years my father moved to In-
diana, to secure to himself a home. We had intended

J. H. BARTII. 231

to go to Indianapolis, but, on account of the impassa-
ble condition of the roads, stopped at a place called
Brandywine. Although we had only designed to wait
for the improvement of the roads to enable us to pro-
ceed on our journey, my father concluded to settle
here. Accordingly he purchased property, and we
made arrangements for living on our land.

A Methodist preacher, by the name of Morgan,
soon visited us, and there were none but Methodist
preachers in this country. The summer passed away;
and in the fall we were all prostrated by the fever
common to that country. My father lay ill six weeks
with the fever, and then died in the full triumphs of
faith. During the whole time of his sickness he
prayed earnestly ; and every morning when we awoke
we could see him on his knees before his bed.

A short time before his death he called us to his
bedside and told us he had found peace with God, and
commended us to our heavenly Father, saying that
God would surely take care of us ; pronounced upon
us his parental blessing, and departed in great peace.

After his death we removed to Louisville, Ken-
tucky, where my two older brothers lived. Here I
went through my catechetical instruction, and was
prepared for confirmation. In my confirmation I was
deeply affected, and had I then had some one to point
me to the Lamb of God who taketh away the sins of
the world, I might have been convei'ted ; but I went
from the house with the delusive impression that the
act of confirmation made me a Christian. My good
impressions gradually left me, and I became careless
and thoughtless about the salvation of my soul ; fond
of going to theaters and place-s of amusement ; yet

282 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

all the time the voice of conscience cried within,
There is a God who will judge you for all you do.
When I thought of death, judgment, and eternity, I
was greatly alarmed ; and amid the giddy scenes of
the ball-room and theater I was often deeply affected.
I sought to drown these serious impressions in the
wine-cup, and frequented many places of amuse-
ment. The thoughts of resigning my body to the
grave were all dreadful to me. 0, what a wretched
condition to live without God and without hope in the
world !

Finally, the report came that there was a German
missionary in the city. I had often heard of mission-
aries, but had never seen one, and my curiosity to
hear him was excited. It was the venerable Peter
Schmucker, and he preached in the Eighth-street
Methodist Church. When we went to Church, the
English service was not quite out. At its close the
old man, in a winning voice, invited us to stay for
German preaching. 0, thought I, what kind-hearted
men missionaries are ! His whole manner indicated
that he was a man of God. He took his stand in the
altar, and gave out a hymn. I took a hearty part in
the singing, and then the preacher kneeled down to
pray ; I was not ashamed to kneel down too, as I had
learned this in Sabbath school. He then took as his
text these words, " Thy kingdom come," and com-
menced to preach. His sermon was plain and pow-
erful, and deeply affected me. I looked and listened
with astonishment, and wondered how a stranger
could be so well acquainted with the workings and
feelings of my heart ; and then, for the first time, saw
how sin had deformed my moral nature. I went

J. II. BARTE. 233

home with a heavy heart, yet glad to have made the
acquaintance of so good a man as father Schmucker.
After some time had elapsed, and I thought the old
man was on his way to some heathen land — for I
thought that missionaries were only sent to heathen
lands — I went one day into a coffee-house to drink,
and the bar-keeper showed me a paper containing a
slanderous article agamst the Methodist German mis-
sionary. I read it, and became indignant, and told
him it was a lie, and that if the old man was still in
the city I would go and hear him again. On the
following Sabbath I was early on my way to the
church. In the afternoon thev had a class meeting:,
and all serious persons were kindly invited to attend.
I went, and with great curiosity I waited to see what
would take place. Finally, after prayer, one arose
and went from one to another, giving them advice and
encouragement, and when he came to me I was so
affected that I could hardly get out the words, " I am
a poor sinner." At the close of this meeting father
Schmucker invited all who wished to forsake their un-
godly ways, and to lead a new life, to come forward
and give him their hand, and God their hearts. I
thought of my broken vows and my past wicked life,
and thought it was my duty to go forward, which I
immediately did. Soon after this some one handed
me a tract on the future judgment, and this so
awakened me to a sense of my lost condition that I
thought the wrath of God was suspended over me,
and that the earth was ready to swallow me up for
my ungodly life. I went to supper in the evening,
but could scarcely eat for tears. I told my condition
to my brother, who said, You must not delay, but we

20

234 GERMAN MISSIONARIES, "

will go to brother Schmucker and make known jour
condition. We came at the right time, for he was
just holding a prayer meeting, and told all the seekers
of salvation to remain on their knees, while the rest
sang and prayed. I obtained no peace, but a deeper
sense of my depravity. Often I lay on the ground
in the night, and prayed to God for mercy ; and in
the mean time I was taken very sick, so that all who
saw me thought I could not recover. I had no fear
of death, yet, at the same time, had not a satisfactory
assurance of my acceptance with God.

After my recovery there was a protracted meeting
held in the city, where brothers Jacoby and Kisling
helped brother Schmucker. There was an invitation
given for seekers of salvation to kneel at the altar,
Avhile the Church united in prayer for them. I at
first was tempted not to go, but upon a second thought
I concluded to go. My convictions were deepened,
and from time to time I continued to go. I mourned
because I had grieved the Savior ; but when I looked
to him, my darkness passed away, and all around me
was light. I felt that heaven was upon earth, and
when I went out into the city all things appeared new ;
for the first time I understood the words of the
apostle, " Old things are passed away and all things
are become new."

After I had fully recovered my health my associa-
tions were such that I had a good opportunity to
grow in grace and in the knowledge of the Savior. I
was soon appointed class-leader, and after some time
was licensed to exhort. I held meetings in the coun-
try, and to my astonishment large crowds came out
to hear mc talk to them. My impression was strong

I

* J. H.BARTH. 235

that I should do something more than work at the
trade which I was learning. In two years I received
license to preach ; and six months afterward was re-
ceived into the regular work in the Kentucky confer-
ence, and from there transferred to the Ohio confer-
ence, where I have since labored as a missionary
among the Germans.

236 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

CHAPTER XVIII.

WM. SCHRECK — JOHN PLANK — CASPER JOST.
EXPERIENCE OF WILLIAM SCHRECK.

I WAS born on the 19th of July, 1815, in the
province of Westphalia, Prussia. I was instructed
by a pious preacher in the Heidelberg catechism, and
was early awakened to see myself a sinner, and that
I must be converted. In this condition I remained
for some five years, but could never feel or assume
that I had obtained the pardon of my sins.

When I was twenty-one years old I came with my
father and brother to America. ■ We landed in Balti-
more, and settled in Westmoreland county, Pennsyl-
vania.

Here I at first felt like a lost sheep without fold
or shepherd. I had read in Germany something of
the Methodists in some missionary reports, and that
they had done much among the heathen. This made
a good impression on my mind. I also learned from
the papers that there were Methodists in the United
States. Soon after I arrived here I inquired about
them, but the Germans where I lived said many
things against them. I soon found that it was per-
secution, and these reports did not diminish my con-
fidence in them. I sought a home in a Methodist
family; and though I could understand English but
little, I was rejoiced to engage with them in family

WILLIAM SCHKECK. 237

worship. They also invited me to go along with
them to the church. Here I did not understand much
except the name of Jesus, which sounds in English
nearly like the German. I often prayed to the Lord
that I might learn the English language soon, so that
I might be profited by the preaching; and I soon
made rapid progress, and in a short time could un-
derstand nearly every thing that was said in English.

There was a camp meeting held by the English
Methodists near my residence. It commenced on the
17th of September, 1838. Two weeks before this
camp meeting the Spirit of God wrought powerfully
upon my heart, so that by times I could neither eat
nor sleep. In this condition I concluded to write to
my old teacher in Germany, and open the condi-
tion of my heart to him, but thought I would wait
till after camp meeting. On Sunday morning at
eleven o'clock I came to the camp-ground, where there
were thousands of people assembled, and the scene
of a camp meeting excited much astonishment in me.
The sermon which I heard deeply afiected me. The
preacher spoke in a plain and distinct manner, and
I could understand him better than I could the rest.
On Monday morning brother Wesley Browning, who
was then stationed in Pittsburg, preached from 1 Cor-
inthians xi, 29. This sermon was an especial blessing
for me, and suited me as well as if some one had told
him my condition. The word was accompanied with
power to my heart. I was so affected that I retired
to weep and pray.

In the evening I left the camp-ground and went
six miles off. After it was dark, when I was passing
along the Monongahela river I began to sing, and now

238 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

the sermon of brother Browning came fresh to my
mind, and it appeared to me that I could see the cor-
ruption of my heart, and the depth of my moral pol-
lution. I sang a hymn, and was seized with a strange
trembling. Tears streamed from my eyes ; I kneeled
down to pray, and then arose and went still further,
and kneeled down again; and as I imagined myself
in sight of the cross, I exclaimed with the man in the
Gospel : " Lord, I believe : help thou my unbelief." No
sooner were these words out of my mouth than I felt
that power from on high came down upon my heart.

I had now no occasion to write for instruction to
my old teacher. The love of God was shed abroad
in my heart through the Holy Ghost given unto me.
After this I felt inwardly moved to tell others what
the Lord had done for me. I opened my mind to
brother Browning, whom I regarded as my father in
the Gospel. I told him I thought I was called to
go to heathen lands to preach the Gospel. Brother
Browning told me to follow the indications of Provi-
dence and go where the way was opened for me. He
also told me that the Methodist Church was about
to send missionaries to the Germans of this country,
and if it was the Lord's will I could labor among
them.

In the spring of 1839 I left Pennsylvania and re-
moved to the state of Indiana, and resided over
three years in Richmond, Wayne county. I attend-
ed the Methodist meetings, but did not unite with the
Church because I could not speak English well enough
to visit the class meetings. Finally, by a good Provi-
dence, brother John Kisling, a German missionary,
was sent to visit us in Richmond. He preached there

' JOHN PLANK. 239

for some time, and I joined the Church under his
encouragement and instruction. I commenced to
preach to the Germans the word of the Lord, and I
was blessed in the attempt. I have since spent many
happy days and seen many souls converted to God.
May his grace be with me to the end !

EXPERIENCE OF JOHN PLANK.

I was born on the 15th of August, 1807, in Zwing-
enburg, Hesse-Darmstadt. In my fifth year I was sent
to school, and in my fourteenth year I was confirmed.
I had been so attentive to my catechetical instructions
that I could repeat the articles of faith from memory,
but had derived no benefit from them to my heart.
I then went for the first time to the table of the Lord,
and believed myself a good Christian. In this false
hope I lived till my thirtieth year. For nearly fifteen
years I never looked into the Bible, and was entirely
controlled by a carnal mind. I was a stranger to
God, and never called his name except when cursing
and swearing.

In the year 1829, on the 2d of August, I came to
America; and as I lived mostly in newly-settled coun-
tries I did not attend Church. When I began to
understand English, I heard of the Methodists, but I
heard only slanderous reports concerning them from
the enemies of the Church. Yet I believed these
reports, and was filled with opposition to Methodism.
Notwithstanding I had gone on in my blindness, and
depended upon baptism and confirmation, yet it
pleased the Lord to show me a better way. As his
love had not moved my stubborn heart, he took his
chastening rod, and I was confined to a sick-bed for

240 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

nine months. I was so ill that my physician one day
expected me to die ; but the next day he pronounced
me better, and told me that when he had left me the
previous day he had no thought of seeing me alive
again. When he had gone I began to think over my
condition, and asked myself, if I had died, where I
should now be ? I sought for the first time to ex-
amine myself, and the more I did so the more I saw
my unfitness for heaven. I now made a solemn
covenant with God, that if he would spare my life
I would serve him better than I had done.

Of conversion I knew nothing, and my idea of a
Christian was gradually to lay aside one sin after
another ; but, alas ! as I gained in bodily strength so
I also gradually forgot to keep my promises.

About this time I removed to the northern part
of Missouri, and had pretty much fallen into my old
habits. Here it pleased the Lord to remind me of
my covenant by confining me again to a bed of sick-
ness for six months. My hard heart now melted into
tenderness, and a struggle commenced. The Spirit
of God on one side drew me to the Savior, and the
enemy of my soul on the other hand was not willing
to give me up. Scarcely had I formed the purpose
to renew my vows to serve God before the enemy
told me: "You have lied unto him once, and now
if you promise again he will not hear you." After a
long and severe conflict in my mind, I ventured again
to call upon God. Not long after this I heard that
there was to be preaching in the neighborhood, the
first sermon that had ever been preached here by a
German Methodist preacher. I formed the resolution
to go, and thought if he could tell me what I must do

JOHN PLANK. 241

to be saved, I would gladly receive the truth. Every
word appeared to suit my case ; my heart melted like
wax before the flame. After the sermon he gave an
invitation to all such as wished to join on probation
and put themselves under the watch-care of the
Church. I was the first one that went forward and
gave him my hand, when seven others followed, among
whom was also my wife. And now the conflict com-
menced once more between Satan and my soul, and
if the Lord had not sustained me by an invisible
hand, the enemy would have obtained an easy victory
over me. Now I first began to learn that I must be
converted. I began to pray in secret, but the more
I prayed the more I saw my miserable condition, and
came to the conclusion that instead of becoming free
from sins I was growing worse. Satan tempted me
by suggesting to my mind the doctrine of uncon-
ditional election and reprobation, and told me I was
one of the reprobates and would be lost do what I
might, and so I discontinued to pray for three days.
During these three days I was greatly tempted to use
profane language, but when I went to class meeting,
I heard a brother tell what temptations he had passed
through, which were similar to mine. As I heard
him tell his trials I formed the firm resolution to
begin to pray again, and not to stop praying, and if
I should be sent to hell I would go crying for mercy.
I prayed earnestly and repeatedly, and depended
too much on my prayers, instead of looking to Christ
and depending on his merits. One Sunday in May,
1841, as I was alone in my house reading the Bible
and thinking on the precious promises it contains, I
said to myself, How is it that I can not believe the^se

21

242 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

promises? I laid the Bible on my chair, kneeled
down and prayed the Lord to give me faith. I arose
and took my Bible and began to read again. My
eyes were filled with tears, but my heart was full of
joy. I could cry out, "Praised be the Lord," for I
felt that my burden was taken from me. But the
tempter soon came and told me I was not converted,
because I did not feel like shouting aloud as many
had done, and so I went on doubting till a camp meet-
ing was held some thirty miles from my residence,
I went with the resolution not to return home till
God should deliver me from my doubts; and I thank
God that he did deliver me in a love-feast on the
14th of August, 1841. So clear was my evidence
that I have never doubted it, and this day I regard as
the day of my spiritual birth.

Soon after this I felt a deep concern for the salva-
tion of my fellow-men, and a voice within me said
that I must call upon them to repent. But I did not
wish to harbor this thought, and believed that the
enemy was tempting me to presumption, and that a
man who preached must have passed through a regu-
lar course of education for the ministry. Still I had
no rest; and as I went on in this way for one year
with these feelings of anxiety for the salvation of
others, I finally opened my mind to a local preacher.
He told me not to think that Satan tempted any one
to preach the Gospel, and before I was aware of it
this matter came to the ears of the circuit preacher,
who exhorted me not to resist the Spirit of God. I
received license to exhort, and soon endeavored to
look after some of my German neighbors, and made
an appointment to hold meeting among them. I

'' CASPERJOST. 243

prayed earnestly to the Lord to open my way and
give me to know my duty. At my first appointment
the Lord stood by me in a remarkable manner.
While I talked to the people they were all melted to
tears, and soon some of them joined the Church. I
was recommended to the quarterly conference, and
received license to preach on the 11th of February,
1843. I commenced to preach, and not without
some fruit. In 1846 I was recommended to the
annual conference, and was sent to Bloomington
mission, where the Lord blessed my labors. I have
seen many brought home to the fold of Christ, and
am still willing to lay my all upon the altar of the
Lord.

EXPERIENCE OP CASPER JOST.

In August, 1840, I came, a student of law and a
Roman Catholic unbeliever, to this country, not know-
ing the difference between a Testament and a Bible.
In Cole county, Missouri, I settled, and went occa-
sionally to the Protestant meetings; for I had been
informed by history of the great evil the Roman
Church has done in the world. I lived till then but
little concerned about religion. Meantime a Roman
priest came into the settlement, and I truly desired to
become religious. I went to the priest and confessed,
but not being conscious of any mortal sin, according
to Romish doctrine, I did not tell him any sin. After
some trifling remarks of the priest, however, I ob-
tained absolution, and partook of the sacrament — hav-
ing said about half a dozen paternosters and ave-
marys for penance, though without being any better.
I still visited the Protestant, especially the Baptist
meetings, and examined and searched all the books

244 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

about religion in my reach. One "work, especially,
"Thoughts on Popery," was of good service to me,
and I became clearly convinced of the errors of Ro-
manism. A great desire at the same time I felt for
truth. Many prayers attended those desires, and a
peace of soul often followed, which, perhaps, I never
had experienced before.

Nothing but Scripture would prove any thing sat-
isfactorily to my mind. The behavior of the priest at
his next visit, together with many other things, led
me to the resolution to renounce Romanism, and, be-
ing much in favor of baptism by immersion, to join
the Baptists. At this time, in the spring of 1843, I
went to live in Jefferson City. There I wont to the
Baptist Church, and at a certain meeting, several
preachers being present, invitation to mourners was
given, and I, a poor sinner and a stranger to all,
came forward to be prayed for. But only think of
my utter surprise when I found out that I had got
among the Methodists, who all this time preached in
the Baptist meeting-house, having none of their own,
and the Baptists having no preacher. I resolved to
go no more ; but a little while after I found myself
seated in my old place, being led there by a secret
power. I asked for the Articles of Faith and Church
Discipline, obtained and examined them, and joined
the Methodist Episcopal Church in the city, then un-
der the pastoral care of Rev. Thomas W. Chandler,
now of the Southern Blinois conference.

Soon after this I got into wicked company, and one
night went to a drinking and dancing party. After
I retired to rest, lo, there was no rest for me.
Conviction and sorrow fell upon me, and I suffered

CASPER JOST. 245

the pains of hell and of a guilty conscience. I rolled
and cried for deliverance, for rest, for sleep, and for
peace with the firmest promise to almighty God never
to sin again. I shall never forget it. After this I
tried to serve God, and fell, without knowing it, in a
self-righteous way, my religion consisting only in
attendance on the means of grace, in the form of
godliness without the power. By this time, in the
fall of 1843, my wife, a Protestant, but not a pro-
fessor, after a severe sickness, was called hence.
Eternity then seemed to he opened before my feet.
There w^as but one step between me and the dead.
"Lord," I cried, "save, or I perish." I then be-
lieved in the all-atoning blood, and the love of God
was poured into my heart. Truly all things had be-
come new to me. 0, thought I, how can any one
neglect so great a salvation as this ? What a burning
love I had for God and for my fellow-creatures !
Jesus was with me by day and by night, and this
first and happy season of love continued many
months.

The next spring I heard the first German mission-
ary. Rev, Sebastian Earth, preach. The time had
come when I was to be admitted into full connec-
tion of Church fellowship; but now I was so much
troubled and tempted about the mode of baptism that
I refused it for some time till I was convinced, both
experimentally and understandingly, that it is the
baptism of the Holy Ghost, and not of water, that
saves the world from sin. Brother Chandler was a
kind and helping father to me in those troubles.
After this I was ofi"ered license to exhort; but it
came so unexpectedly to me that I did not accept

246 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

it till my mind had become right in this matter also.
It was in Benton county, Missouri, that I first at-
tempted to hold out the crucified Savior to sinners.
Satan like a lion came upon me and tempted me that
religion was all nothing. Fear and shame befell me.
At last I thought that I was not converted myself.
I went out in the woods, and upon the ground I lifted
up my heart to God. There it was that a heavenly
light, quick as lightning, broke in upon my soul, and
before the mercy-seat of heaven I held on each of
my hands one of those persons engaged in prayer
for the pardon of sins. I went into the house with
brother Barth, to whom I related Avhat I had experi-
enced. Prayer meeting commenced, and erelong the
power of the Holy Ghost came down upon us. Up-
ward of thirty persons were struck to the floor,
pleading with God for mercy. Many powerful con-
versions took place, and my poor soul was so filled
witl%a bliss of heaven and its realities that I was
ready to take wings and fly away where Jesus is.
Fear of death and hell had fled. I was saved — saved
in the arms of the Lord. I prayed him to take me
up, and if not now, to let me die in such a state.

Several months after I came to the same place.
The devil bufieted me again — suggesting that I was
not called to preach. I prayed to God in the morn-
ing, and as day broke I heard a loud voice speak:
"Fear not, I have called thee." I arose, and brother
Barth informed me that he was not well enough to
preach, and I must do it in his place. I preached three
times the next day, obtained license, and was recom-
mended to the Missouri annual conference, where I
was received in 1844, and appointed to the South St.

CASPER JOST. 247

Louis mission. I found twenty-three members there
and the corner-stone of a church-building, laid during
conference. I collected money to finish the base-
ment for winter, where we then held our meetings,
with the intention to finish the church the ensuing
year, but was prevented by reason of sickness. At
the close of my labor our numbers were doubled. At
the Illinois annual conference, at Springfield, in Sep-
tember, 1845, I was ordained deacon by Bishop Mor-
ris, and appointed to North St. Louis station, con-
taining about one hundred members. The Lord
blessed us there with a glorious revival, and at the
end of the year we numbered two hundred. I was
ordained elder by Bishop Hamline September, 1846,
at the Illinois annual conference, at Paris, and reap-
pointed to St. Louis station. Our little church, built
five years before, had now become too small. We
therefore, in the spring of 1847, took it down and
built a larger one on the same spot, which was dedi-
cated immediately after the conference of 1847, when
I was yet present in St. Louis. We had also during
the year many precious seasons from on high. Many
souls were converted, and our numbers increased. I
had seen and experienced wonderful things. At the
Illinois annual conference, in September, 1847, at
Jacksonville, I was appointed to Milwaukie mission,
and to visit in place of the presiding elder three times
during the year Chicago, Galena, Dubuque, Jefi'erson,
and Milwaukie missions. In Milwaukie I found seven
members; but, thanks be to God! he has done good
things for us here also.

248 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

CHAPTER XIX.

C. SCHELPER — S. EARTH — H. KOCH — J. MANN.
EXPERIENCE OF CHARLES SCHELPER.

In the year 1836 I came to Wheeling, Virginia, and
made my residence there. In Germany I had never
heard any thing of Methodism, except through the
manifold misrepresentation of the German Lutherans.
Here I was induced to go to the church to sec what
was going on ; but, thanks be to God ! I found things
quite diiferent from what had been represented to me.
I was induced to visit the church frequently, till
finally, after a year and six months of my residence
in Wheeling, God, through his infinite mercy, revealed
his grace to me, a poor sinner, and worked repentance
in my heart. I was brought to see my sins and my
misery to such a degree that, at first, I could scarcely
believe there was yet mercy for me. But the pre-
cious Savior commenced the work of salvation in my
soul, and he also brought it to a glorious consumma-
tion. The preacher then stationed there was Rev.
Wesley Browning, and in the spring of 1838, under
his ministry, I was converted. After this I com-
menced to speak to the people, and the Lord blessed
my efforts. More were soon willing to go with us ;
and at the next Christmas brother Swahlen came to
us as missionary. God ' carried on his work glori-
ously, and I began to feel it nay duty to go out and

SEBASTIAN EARTH. 249

labor for God in his vineyard ; but I felt too weak,
and for a -while strove against the call. There seemed
to be many difficulties in the way ; but these were at
length surmounted, and in 1841 I was licensed as
local preacher. Though I had once refused to go, I
felt that I must do my duty, and accordingly I started
in the year 1844; since then the Lord has blessed
my feeble efforts.

EXPERIENCE OF SEBASTIAN BARTH.

I was one who served God after the tradition of the
fathers, and knew nothing of that hidden treasure of
which the Gospel speaks, till one of my friends in
Louisville invited me to visit with him a certain
church Avhere, as he told me, an old man by the name
of Schmucker was preaching. I went one Sunday
evening with him, and heard the preacher with much
satisfaction. At the close of the sermon the preacher
gave out a class meeting for the following Sabbath
afternoon, and as I was quite a stranger to such re-
ligious exercises, I was induced to go to the class
meeting, more out of curiosity than from any other
motive. Here, for the first time in my life, I heard
the language of Canaan, which was like a joyful
sound to my inner nature, till I was awakened as one
from a dream, and began to see my sad condition as
a sinner. After the meeting an invitation was given
to all such as wished to seek the salvation of their
souls, to join the Church, and I went forward and
gave my name to the preacher, without knowing what
Church I had joined till afterAvard they began to
persecute me as a Methodist. But as I had once
taken this people for my people, and their God for

250 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

my God, I could not be changed in my purpose, for I
felt more and more the necessity of being reconciled
to God, and so my soul was drawn out to seek the
Lord.

I sought for weeks, with crying and tears, but
found him not, and the reason was nothing but unbe-
lief, till I finally exclaimed, in the anguish of my soul,
" 0, Lord ! how long must I yet go about with my
load of sins upon me?" Then I heard a voice whis-
pering within me, " The blood of Christ was also shed
for thee." In looking up to him by simple faith my
hearrt was filled with joy, and my load of sins was at
once removed. But soon doubts arose, and I lost all
my joy; yet I thank God that he kept me by his
power, and sustained me till I again heard my Savior's
voice saying to me, " Be thou faithful unto death, and
I will give thee a crown of life."

Unfortunately, soon after my conversion, a book
fell into my hands which distracted my mind and
caused me much grief, and for some time led me
astray ; yet I came to the Lord with earnest prayer,
and he delivered me, and at the same time gave me
such an ardent desire to labor for the good of my
countrymen that I felt almost as great a struggle of
soul as I had when I first sought the Lord. By pray-
ing and seeking, the Lord finally let the light of his
countenance shine upon me. Father Schmucker ex-
plained to me how preachers were received into the
Methodist Church, and made an appointment for me
to exhort, which I did with great fear; and now new
temptations came. The question of baptism agitated
our society, and I became entangled in the discussion
till I had again lost my peace and got out of the

SEBASTIAN EARTH. 251

way. After these storms had passed over I was
again united with the society ; and now the inward
desire to labor in public for God's cause was in(?reased
in me, and through our brother Schmucker I was ap-
pointed to labor as colporteur in Louisville and Cin-
cinnati. In 1842, in Louisville, I received license to
exhort, and with my brother Philip I was sent to St.
Louis, Missouri, where we labored with great success
among the scattered Germans.

This was the best school I could have had to pre-
pare me for a preacher ; for wherever I could find a
few scattered Germans I got them together, and ex-
horted them, and prayed with them. Thus I was
gradually delivered from my fears, and the love of
God was kindled more and more in my heart, and
under the teachings and encouragement of brothers
Jacoby and Schreck I was strengthened in the work,
and by their patience and kindness I was thus pre-
pared for my future labors. Upon their recommend-
ation, in the year 1843, I received license to preach,
and was sent to Versailles mission. I went to my
work with fear and trembling, but with confidence
in Him who said, " All power is given to me in heaven
and on earth ; and, lo, I am with you always to the
end of the world." I soon found that the Lord was
with me, and sinners were awakened and converted ;
and in my first year one hundred souls were added to
the Church, most of whom had been converted, and
were happy in the Lord.

I was returned to this mission the second year, and
the year following was sent to Burlington, Iowa.
There I was received kindly, and the English brethren
gave me the basement of their church to preach in.

252 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

Notwithstanding the opposition I first met with, I
soon got a few children together and organized a
Sabbath school, which soon drew a number of the
parents. At the end of this year I was ordained
elder by Bishop Hamline, and returned to the same
field. My aim, ever since my first commencement in
this work, has been to live a holy life, and to serve
God with a humble and loving heart all the days of
my life.

EXPERIEXOE OF HERMAN KOCH.

In the year 1834 I migrated to America, with the
view of becoming a wealthy citizen ; and, in order to
attain this end, I exerted all my powers, and thus I
was an earthly, carnally-minded man, without God and
without Christ in the world. Notwithstanding I had
received a religious training in my youth, I lived, as
the heathens do, in all manner of ungodliness. I
often took the sacrament in the Lutheran Church, and
received absolution from the preacher, but received no
pardon for my sins ; and, with all this, I remained in
my sins and under the power of Satan, and was daily
in danger of being finally lost. But God, who has no
pleasure in the death of the sinner, sought me out by
his good Providence and humbled me by his chasten-^
ing rod, for my heart was hardened and full of cor-
ruption.

In my sickness I promised God if he would allow
me to recover, I would serve him all the days of my
life, and he heard my cry and did not cut down the
unfruitful cumberer of the ground. After I had made
this vow unto the Lord, his Spirit convinced me of sin
and showed me that there was no power in me to

JOHN MANN. 253

resist the corruptions of my depraved heart, and now I
saw more clearly the slavery and thralldom of sin. I
then went to Cincinnati, and heard that there were
German Methodists there. I attended their preach-
ing, and also went several times to their class meet-
ings; but here I felt my sins like mountains on my
heart, and fear and trembling seized me as I heard the
children of God tell of Jesus and his grace. I left
the meetings and again turned my heart toward Sod-
om; but the good Spirit followed me, and I again
went back to meeting, and from four to five months I
was under deep awakening. The enemy often tempted
me sorely, yet I continued to pray with strong crying
and tears before a throne of grace; and I thank
God, that after a long struggle against the powers
of darkness, Jesus shone into my heart as the
bright morning star — joy and peace sprang up in
my soul, and I could say, "My Lord and my God."
This peace I received at the hour of midnight, and
on the next day I declared what the Lord had done
for my soul.

In my Christian life I have passed through severe
trials and temptations, and especially since God has
called me to labor in his vineyard; but his grace is
sufiicient for us. My desire is to be wholly devoted
to the Lord, consecrated to his service, that I may not
finally myself become a castaway.

EXPERIENCE OF JOHN MANN.

In the year 1833 I was awakened under a sermon
preached by a brother Windin, in Alleghany county,
Pennsylvania, and immediately I had a desire to

254 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

obtain an evidence of my acceptance with God. But,
as I could not speak English, and as I wanted to find
some Germans with whom I could converse on the sub-
ject of religion, I removed to Monroe county, Ohio,
where there was a large German settlement. Here I
had expected to find some pious Germans; but, alas, I
found none ! not even one !

By good fortune there was an English Methodist
preacher in this neighborhood, whose ministrations I
attended. As he always preached earnestly, though
I could not understand him, I felt the power of his
words in my heart, and continued to feel more sensi-
bly the load of my sins pressing me down. When
the minister saw my embarrassment he sent for a local
preacher, who could speak some German, to come and
converse with me. He prayed for me, and pointed
me to the Savior in my own language. For three
weeks I continued in great distress of mind. My
neighbors persecuted me, and said my mind Was de-
ranged, so that my wife was afraid of me. My sor-
rows continued to increase, and I wept day and night,
mourning over my sins. At last it pleased God to
deliver me from my sorrows. It was on the fourth
of February, 1836, when the Lord revealed himself,
in great mercy, to me, while I was praying to him in
the open field. Then I found pardon in the blood of
the Lamb. The Lord filled my heart, and the love of
Christ constrained me to tell my neighbors what the
Lord had done for me. Three years after my conver-
sion I consecrated myself more fully to God, and found
that holiness which the Gospel demands, and without
which we can not see the Lord.

I have labored a number of years as German mis-

JOHN MANN. 255

sionary, and have had many happy seasons. My
prayer is, that the Lord may keep me humble, and let
me feel more and more my own unworthiness and his
grace.

2§6 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

CHAPTER XX.

JOHN PHETZING — CONRAD GAHN.
EXPERIENCE OF JOHN PHETZING.

I "WAS born in Kurhessen, in 1814, and brought up
in the Reformed Church according to the customs of
the country. I was deeply awakened several times in
my native country, but had no one to teach or lead
me in the right way, and therefore continued to live
in my sins as did others. On one occasion we were
reading our Lord's sermon on the Mount, and our
teacher in giving us an explanation of it said to us :
"Children, if we are indeed required to live as strictly
as this sermon of our Lord seems to demand of us, I
know of no one in all our country that will be saved;
yet I believe the Bible was only written to keep us
from outbreaking sins." These instructions of my
teacher inspired in me a false hope, in which I lived
for some time.

In the year 1836 I left my native land for America,
with a view to lead a better life, and thought I would
commence to do so on the ship. At first I supposed
that all on board must be very pious or the ship would
surely sink, but when I saw the ungodliness of the
crew, and the ship still riding safely over the waves, I
began to conclude that the Lord after all would not be
so strict Avith us, and so I grew careless again.

When I left home an old man made me promise to

JOHN PHETZING. 257

repeat the Lord's prayer as soon I set foot on Ameri-
can soil ; but when we landed in Baltimore I was sur-
rounded bj a large crowd of people, and I could not
bring myself to fulfill my promise. From Baltimore
I went to Wheeling, where I found employment; and
for the first year after my an'ival I repeated my pray-
ers, night and morning, such as I had committed to
memory in childhood. Then I became associated
with scoffers of religion, and entirely quit my prayers,
grew worse and worse till I became a doubter of the
truths of the holy Scriptures. I was employed in a
grocery where whisky and other strong drink was
sold, and I became somewhat addicted to drinking.

In this condition I continued till the year 1839,
when I was visited by brother Riemenschneider. He
had formerly been an associate of mine in Wheeling,
but had gone to Pittsburg some six months previously,
and there had heard brother Nast preach, and had
been awakened and converted. When he returned to
Wheeling and called upon me, I began with my fool-
ishness, as on former occasions, for I delighted in
causing people to laugh, and was accustomed to write
down all kinds of silly jokes, so that when I met my
comrades I might read them and thus excite their
mirth. On this occasion, when brother Riemen-
schneider visited me, I began in my old way, but he
soon looked very serious at me, and said, " Phetzing,
I can not hear such stuff as that, but if you will go
to prayer meeting, come with me." These words so
affected me that I did not stop to read what I had
written, but went home and threw the paper into
the fire.

Much as I was affected I still hated the thought

258 GERMAN MISSIONARIES. #v

that my friend Riemenschneider had hecome a Meth-
odist, for I despised the name. I went into my room
and drew a picture of the devil, according to the best
idea I had of his appearance — with horns, tail, and
fearful claws. When I had finished my picture I was
strangely affected, so that Avherever I went that fear-
ful image moved before my eyes and I could not get
rid of it. A voice within whispered to me, " Such a
devil will finally get you if you do not repent."
And this impression became so strong that it tor-
mented me.

Soon after this I went into a house of one of the
Methodists on Sunday, and was invited to go to the
class meeting. Brother Swahlen led the class, and I
was astonished at the narration of rehgious experi-
ences given by the members and at the exhortation
of the preacher ; but trembled from fear that he would
come to me also. He finally approached me and said,
"Young man, are you also willing to flee from the
wrath to come?" I was offended at his question, and
thought if I said yes they would consider me one of
their members, and if I said no they Avould think I
was determined to go to destruction. The preacher
extending to me his hand, I hesitatingly took it, and
said, "Yes, I will flee the wrath to come." I became
very much affected ; so they kneeled down and prayed
for me, and at that class meeting I joined the Church.

At night I returned to the store, where I slept,
and thought I would take my usual evening dram;
but as I was about to do so I recollected the expres-
sion of a sister, whom I once heard say that if we
had temptations to do any thing wrong we should
immediately fall down on our knees and pray to God

^ JOHNPUETZING. 259

for deliverance. I followed this advice, kneeled down
and prayed, and for that time gained the victory.
But the next morning the struggle came again. As
the customers came in, and I had to fill their vessels,
and the fumes of the liquor arose from the barrels,
I had a strong temptation to drink; but I went to
prayer as I did the evening before, and the Lord
gave me the victory again. And I had that day
such a distaste against strong drink that I was never
tempted to taste it afterward, although for some time
longer I continued to deal it out. One day as I was
rolling up a number of hrandy casks, I involuntarily
commenced preaching to them; but soon became
alarmed, and thought. I had committed a great sin,
and kneeled down among them, and prayed God to
pardon this sin. On account of my business I could
not attend the meetings regularly. Yet I continued
to read my Bible and to pray in secret at every
opportunity.

About this time there were a number converted to
God, but I was still unconverted. One Sabbath I
locked myself up in my room and resolved to read
seven chapters out of the Bible and pray seven
times. After I had done this I arose from my knees,
sprang up, and went away doubting the truth of
religion. A narrow escape from death by the dis-
charge of a loaded pistol, which I was handling,
brought me to my knees again, and I thanked God
that I had not been sent into eternity in my hardened
and unbelieving condition. I began anew to seek the
salvation of my soul, and so continued for six months,
when I again became impatient and unbelieving, and
threw the Bible from me, thinking I would not read

260 GERMAN MISSIONARIES. ^'

it again. Plappening, however, to pick it up as it
lay open before me, my eyes fell upon these words,
" I will show him how much he must suffer for my
name's sake." Acts ix, 16. These words brought
tears from my eyes. I took the Bible, pressed it to
my heart, and said, " I will read this book and follow
its directions, and rather go to destruction a penitent
seeker than go back and become hardened again."
With this determination I continued some weeks, till
one Sunday morning, when I read "Arndt's True
Christianity." After I had read a while I kneeled
down and prayed ; and while I was praying the Lord
appeared to my soul and delivered me and gave peace
and pardon, and on the same day I went to the class
and declared the joyful tidings of my deliverance from
the bondage of sin.

Soon after my conversion I made a visit to my
native country. When I arrived among my old asso-
ciates in Germany I was soon met with friendly
greetings; and, according to custom, the bottle was
soon brought, and a glass of whisky poured out. I
was requested to drink with them, but I refused.
This caused my friends to look at me with astonish-
ment, and to ask whether people in America did not
drink. Upon which I replied that I did not drink
any, and commenced to give them a temperance lec-
ture, telling them the evils of intemperance and the
ruin it had brought into many fixmilies. I then
pointed to one after another among them who had
lost house and home by indulging in this sinful habit,
and finally brought them so far that none of them
would drink. When dinner was ready, and they
were about to begin eating without the asking of a

JOHN PHETZING. 261

blessing, I told them that in America we were in
the habit of praying when we eat, and I asked the
blessing of God upon the victuals before us. In the
evening, when we were about to retire to sleep, I took
the Bible and told them that in America we read the
Bible and prayed in our families. So I read a chap-
ter, and then kneeled down and prayed with them.

The schoolmaster of the place soon heard of it, and
reported to his school that I had become a Roman
Catholic, because I kneeled when I prayed; and
warned all the people against me. I, however, had
taken a bundle of the Christian Apologist and re-
ligious tracts with me, and distributed them among
the people. By reading these they soon found out
that I was not a Roman Catholic, and they were then
quite severe against the schoolmaster for having slan-
dered me. I found that the schoolmaster had exerted
a bad influence among the children by telling them
that it was not necessary to ask a blessing at the
table, and through this many had neglected even this
common form of worship, while family prayer was
scarcely ever thought of.

On one occasion I was sent for to go and pray for
a sick woman ; and when I started in company with
my brother, he said to me, " Shall we not take the
Prayer-Book with us ?" I told him we did not need
it. I went and prayed extemporaneously with the
woman ; and while I kneeled down and prayed the
family and friends present stood and looked on with
great surprise, perhaps never having seen such a
sight before.

But I have not time to enter into a detail of the
various occurrences during my visit to my old friends.

262 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

I hope that the tracts and Apologists which I distrib-
uted, together with what I told them of the grace of
God manifested to us in America, left some good im-
pression upon their minds.

After a stay of about six weeks there, I started
back for our beloved and free America, glad that I
had found a home here, and especially glad that this
happy land had been made more dear to me by being
the land of my spiritual birth. When I once more
was permitted to set my feet on American soil, and
thought of the religious liberties which we here enjoy,
I felt like prostrating myself to the earth, and kissing
the ground on which I walked.

I went from Baltimore, where I landed, to Pitts-
burg, and soon, yielding to the convictions of my own
conscience and the call of the Church, I commenced
to labor for the good of my countrymen. In two
years afterward I started out as a German missionary.
It would be too tedious to relate my labors, conflicts,
and triumphs in the cause of my blessed Savior.
Hitherto the Lord hath helped me, and I am still
willing to spend my time and strength in his service.

EXPERIENCE OF CONRAD GAHN.

I was born on the 9th of February, 1818, in the
grand duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany. From
my sixth to my fourteenth year I was sent to school,
where I enjoyed the instruction of a faithful teacher.
In my fourteenth year I was confirmed, and recog-
nized by the preacher and the people as a member of
the Church, and was declared to be a Christian. But
I considered myself an ungodly sinner, and a rebel
against God.

CONRAD GAHN. 263

In my childhood God wrought powerfully in my
heart, so that often, when I was alone and thought of
my life, I burst into tears, and exclaimed, " God, be
merciful to me a sinner." I often thought it would
have been better for me if I had never been born;
for I had no one to lead me in the right way, and I
knew not the way in which to go. What darkened
my mind the most was our preacher himself, and the
whole community. I often viewed the conduct of the
preacher and members of the Church, but could find
no Christian example ; and I venture to say there
was not one of them converted. My great misfor-
tune is that I did not follow the teachings of the Holy
Spirit, which urged me to read my Bible and take it
for the rule of my life.

Finally, my pious feelings left me, and I sank into
a state of carnal security, and could drink in iniquity
like water. I was even tainted with rationalism, so
that I constantly became worse, and sought to spend
my youthful days in folly, which often brought me
into great danger and embarrassment.

But suddenly my earlier pious inclinations re-
turned, my conscience again commenced to reprove
me as much as ever, and I once more felt the neces-
sity of a change of heart. I reflected on my condi-
tion, and concluded that it would be impossible for me
to lead a Christian life in my father-land. I therefore
resolved to leave all my ungodly associates and emi-
grate to America. With stafl" in hand I started on
ray journey, and came safely across the great ocean.

On arriving in America I soon fell into my old
habits, so that instead of seeking the kingdom of God
and his righteousness, I sought the world with its

264 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

pleasures. I settled in Sandusky county, Ohio; and
in the early part of my residence there I heard no
sermons, and the Sabbath was spent like a week-day.
The German settlers finally hired a Lutheran preacher;
but the people remained in their old condition, and I
again fell into a rationalistic belief. The Church to
which I belonged had members who would curse,
swear, drink whisky ; and, to my shame, I must con-
fess that I was one of the foremost in all these crimes.
But thanks be to God ! suddenly an alarm was
given that the false prophets, as the German Method-
ist preachers were called, had come into the neigh-
borhood. For a long time I would not go to hear
them ; for as I knew there was but very little religion
in the Church to which I belonged, I thought there
would be none at all among the Methodists. I, how-
ever, heard many things about the Methodists and
their manner of worship, the mourners' bench, pray-
ing in the spirit, etc. Finally, my wife persuaded me
to go with her to a Methodist prayer meeting. There
was a revival just then going on in the Church, and I
saw many, whom I had known previously going on
heedlessly in a course of sin, now earnestly praying
for mercy. Suddenly my sins came upon me like a
mighty torrent, the tears rolled in streams from my
eyes, and I was convinced that this was the right way
to heaven. I immediately formed the resolution, that
if there was yet mercy for me in heaven, to seek it
by repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus
Christ. But I was afraid that I had come too late,
and had carried my course of sin too far; but my
resolution was firm to pray, and if I Avere cast into
hell I resolved to go calling for mercy.

CONRAD GAHN. 265

The prayer meeting closed, and my "vrife and I left
the house. I remarked to her: "As you persuaded
me to go with you to the church, now tell me what
do you think of this matter." She replied, "I do
not think much of it. I believe such confusion is not
acceptable to God, but indeed we should do better
than we have been doing." I answered her, "I am
determined to seek religion, and if God will give
grace in secret and silent prayer I will receive it
thankfully; but should my feelings induce me to cry
aloud I will do it; God's word is not against loud
praying. I must have religion or be lost." We came
home and there I met one of my ungodly comrades.
As soon as he got sight of me, he said to me, "Are
you sick, or what ails you?" I said to him: "I am
sick in my soul and right dangerously, too, and if
you and I do not repent, we will both go to hell ; and
there is no doubt about it." He immediately replied :
" You are right ; we have been the most ungodly in
the neighborhood, but only be cheerful. I think it
will soon go better with us, for the Lord has sent his
servant among us. Yesterday there was a German
Methodist preacher at my house by the name of E.
Riemenschneider, and asked of me the privilege of
preaching in my house, to which I gave my consent.
Come over then and we will do better."

Brother Riemenschneider preached frequently; but
for some time it appeared that his labor was in vain.
No one seemed willing to make a start, and my own
convictions were not as strong as they had been at first.
Yet I had been sufficiently instructed by the preach-
ing of the Gospel, that I knew the way and defended
the truth, but I had not obtained that which I was

266 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

seeking for, namely, the pardon of my sins. In tins
sorrowful condition I lived for some time under great
persecution, and it was said in our neighborhood that
the first one who joined the Methodist Church should
be driven out of the place. I now could not go with
the wicked world, neither could I count myself with
the people of God. This was indeed a mournful time
with me. I began to doubt whether there was mercy
for me ; yet I thought upon my promise to the Lord,
namely, to pray for mercy till I found it. I had
tried all along to leave oif my sins gradually, but I
made poor progress, and found ceasing from habits
of sin was not pardon for past sins.

Brother Riemenschneider stopped preaching in our
neighborhood for a time, and his nearest preaching-
place was five miles from my house, but the distance
was not too great for me, and I continued to attend
the meeting. There was a two-days' meeting appoint-
ed, and I went on Saturday evening earnestly seeking
and praying for the pardon of my sins. About ten
o'clock at night, I felt that if the Son of God makes
free, we are free indeed. The word of power came
down to me, "Be of good cheer; thy sins are all
forgiven thee." I then received the Spirit of adop-
tion, by which I cried, " Abba, Father." This was on
the fourth day of May, 1843.

Brother Riemenschneider opened the door of the
Church and I gave him my name, with a determina-
tion to work out my salvation with fear and trembling
so long as I have to remain in this vale of tears.
We organized a class and held prayer meetings among
us, and our number gradually increased till we had
seventeen.

CONRAD GAHN. 267

Soon after my conversion I felt that I ought to
preach, but became much alarmed at this thought,
and would often fall upon my knees and pray to
God to take such feelings from me. Fear and trem-
bling often seized me ; for I thought it was the enemy
of my soul who put such desires into my mind, to
excite in me pride, and thus cause my fall. I was
always willing to do the will of God, but I did not
believe that this was his will. I knew that my educa-
tion was limited, and I did not consider myself com-
petent and holy enough for such an important calling.
I then commenced to contend against these feelings,
and to banish them from my mind, and in this way
come very near losing my religious enjoyment. I
was as deeply distressed in my mind as when I was
a penitent seeker, and could get no light. I was
ashamed to mention my feelings to any one, though I
sometimes thought I would make them known to
brother Riemenschneider. No one knew any thing
of it, and for whole nights on my bed I contended
with these feelings. But my impressions became
stronger, and often in meeting I felt like rising and
talking to the people, and sometimes had to hold
myself back to keep from making disturbance in the
congregation. While I thought no one knew any
thing of my feelings, I found I was mistaken; for
one day a pious brother said to me : " Brother Gahn,
I believe God has called you to preach." I became
alarmed, turned the conversation to another subject,
and left him as soon as possible. On my way home
I met another brother in whom I had the greatest
confidence, and told him how it had been with me for
a long time past. He told me the same that the

k

268 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

first brother had said, and also remarked that the
whole class was of the same opinion. " But, brother
Galm," said he, "you must put your trust in God."
Tears filled my eyes and I went home. Brother Bier
was then missionary on the Sandusky mission, and
to him I made known my feelings, and he gave me
much encouragement and comfort. He told me not
to banish such thoughts from my mind, but to resign
myself to the will of the Lord, assuring me that he
would direct me aright.

I became class-leader, and exercised my talents in
talking to the people, and had great enjoyments in
the discharge of this duty. I resigned myself quietly
to the will of God, often believing that my feelings
moving me to preach would finally leave me ; but this
was not the case. I received license to exhort on the
12th of June, 1845.

I often felt the powers of the world to come and
the blessing of God richly resting upon me, but I
was still not willing to preach, for I knew my own un-
fitness. Brother Schmucker came as presiding elder
and talked to me on the subject. I said to him: "I
am not suflSciently educated." He replied: "If God
has called you to preach he will prepare you for the
work." And then he told me to pray much, read my
Bible with diligence, live humble and pious.

I received license to preach on the 15th of April,
1846, and began to labor as a local preacher. During
the week I followed my regular employment, and
on Sabbath I went to my appointments, and often
had refreshing seasons from the Lord; but many a
time I had severe trials to pass through, yet my
Savior stood by me.

CONRAD GAHN. 269

The last qucarterly conference for the year arrived,
and a proposition was made to me to take a recom-
mendation from it to the annual conference to enter
the traveling connection. I hesitated, as I had worked
hard to clear up my farm, and was prepared to
live comfortably on it. By the advice of brother
Schmucker, however, I gave myself wholly to the
Lord, and I can now say I am well satisfied with my
lot. I was recommended and received into the Ohio
conference in the year 1846.

On my way to the first appointment I was taken
sick with a violent fever, so that there were great
doubts about my recovery. Then the enemy again
came with his temptations, suggesting to me that this
was an evidence that the Lord had not called me.
But by the grace of God the enemy was vanquished,
for I could truly say, If it is not the will of God that
I should preach, I thank him that he has thus hedged
up my way, even if it should be by my death. But I
recovered from my sickness, and afterward enjoyed
good health. I went to my mission, leaving my wife
and four children at home. God gave me grace to
bid family and friends farewell, and I arrived safe
at my first mission, and was received with kindness.
Since that time I have passed through severe trials
and temptations, but hitherto the Lord hath helped
me, and I thank him for all his goodness, and I hope
that he who has begun a good work in me will carry
it on till the day of redemption. With a dependence
on him who has sustained me thus far,

" I'll lift my hands, I'll raise my voice,
While I have breath to pray or praise:
This work shall make my heart rejoice.
And fill the remnant of my days."

270 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

CHAPTER XXI.

JOHN HAAS — "WILLIAM F I E G E N B AU M — J. L.
W A L T H E R .

EXPERIENCE OF JOHN HAAS.

I LIVED with my family in St. Louis when brother
Jacoby was sent there as German missionary, and in
the second year of his ministry I sent my chiklren to
his Sunday school. They became very much attached
to it, and notwithstanding the prejudice of many of
my German neighbors against the Methodists, I was
not so bigoted as to keep my children away, for I
found that what they learned was according to the
teachings of the Bible. I myself had no practical
religion nor any experimental knowledge of a change
of heart, but was satisfied with being called a Lu-
theran. In the mean time the good seed that was
sown in the hearts of the children in the Sabbath
school began to grow. They pra^^-ed at home, and
joyfully went to the meetings of the Methodists,
though I myself had no desire to go to any church.

The youngest of my three boys frequently took the
Bible at home and read it, and then kneeled down and
prayed. This made me feel ashamed of myself, as I
had lived prayerless and spent my life in the world,
though I had the name of a Christian. My wife com-
menced going with the children to meeting, and also
sometimes went to prayer meeting, and was soon

JOHN HAAS. 271

awakened to see her lost condition and her need of a
Savior, and would gladly have joined the Church if
she had not been afraid of me. She spoke to me on
the subject and asked my opinion about repentance and
conversion, and told me that it was her desire and wish
to be converted, and asked me kindly and mildly whether
I would not once go with her to the German Methodist
church; but this I was not then prepared to do.

One Sabbath evening, however, as my wife and chil-
dren were preparing to go to the church, my children
looked sad and my wife was grieved because I would
not go with them. All their eyes were turned to me,
and they exhibited an anxious desire for me to go,
and seemed as though they were afraid to ask. Yet
my little boy came to me and took me by my right
hand, and said : " Father, come along with us to church ;
come, father, do go with us." This invitation from
the innocent child melted me down. His words were
as a hammer to break my stony heart. I was com-
pletely subdued, but did not wish it to be known that
he was stronger than I and had conquered me ; so I
allowed them to go on alone to meeting, and I gath-
ered up my remaining courage to go to the card-table.
I set out and got as far as the door of the house, but
here I paused ; I could not go in, for it appeared to
me that the tender hand of my little boy was holding
me back. His voice was still sounding in my ears,
"Come along with us to church;" and thus, while
struggling with myself, I gathered resolution and
turned to go. On the way I had to contend with my
old propensity and against my deep-rooted habits of
sin and the power of the devil ; but I was overcome
and turned back to my place of sinful amusement.

272 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

Here I stood for the second time before the door, but
had not the power nor the courage to go in. So I
went back and forth till I stood for the third time
before the house, where I had spent so many even-
ings in playing cards. As I now reflected on my past
life I was seized with fear and horror at a recollection
of the past, and made the solemn resolution to go to
the church; so I went and the Lord strengthened me
in my purpose.

Religious services had commenced, and brother
Jacoby was just beginning to preach; I was aston-
ished, as I sat under the preaching of the word, that
every thing appeared so appropriate to my case. I
thought, how is it possible that the preacher should
know my heart so well? I was fully convinced by
the word of God and the operation of his Holy Spirit,
of my sinful condition, so that I felt myself quite
lost, and under sentence of condemnation. When
the meeting closed I went home, leaving my family to
come after me, and they were astonished and rejoiced
when I told them that I had been in the Methodist
church. On the next Thursday evening, as there was
preaching again, my Avife and I went, and both of us
joined the Church. On Friday evening there was
prayer meeting in the church, which seekers of salva-
tion were invited to attend. I went with my heavy-
burdened heart to seek for peace, but I found it not.
My distress appeared to increase, I felt humbled be-
fore God and man, and durst scarcely to look up. I
felt as if I were unworthy of society, and almost
feared that the earth would open itself to receive me.

On Saturday afternoon I went to the house of
brother Jacoby to get him to pray for me. There

JOHN HAAS. 273

were several brethren there when I came, and they
all prayed with me and pointed me to my Savior, and
told me that I too could find pardon for my sins in the
blood of the Lamb if I could come to him by faith.
I lay before the mercy-seat, and called out like Pe-
ter, " Save Lord, or I perish !" But the hour of my
deliverance had not come. Forsaken by Christ, as I
believed, eternal condemnation appeared to be my sad
fate. In this sorrowful condition I went to bed at
night, rolled about in anguish, and moistened my pil-
low with my tears. Satan appeared to stand before
me and claim me as his own. With anguish, and a
strong and intense desire, I looked once more to the
Savior, and besought him to receive me and not let
me fall into the hands of my enemy. Now the Lord
revealed himself to me as I opened my mouth to speak.
While the name of Jesus was on my tongue his love
penetrated and filled my heart, so that I could love
him as I had never loved before. I rejoiced in my
Savior who had crowned me with joy and gladness.
Anguish and fear had now vanished away, the love of
God streamed through my soul, and I was fully con-
vinced that he had adopted me as his child, and I was
happy in a union and communion with him. Finally
the morning dawned, and I could for the first time
arise from my bed as a sinner saved by the blood of
Christ. This was the first Sabbath in May, 1843.

Immediately after my conversion I felt myself
moved to tell my friends and relations what the mer-
ciful God, in his free grace through Christ Jesus, had
done for my poor soul. At first they were much op-
posed and ofi"ended, and thought I had fallen from the
faith of my fathers ; but I thank God that they also

274 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

were afterward converted. I rejoiced in the service
of the God of my salvation, and it was the desire of
my heart to labor in his cause and to grow in the
knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ ; but
I had often to complain of my own unfaithfulness and
shortcomings which have caused me many a conflict.
About two years after my conversion I felt a gradu-
ally increasing impression that I should preach ; but
I was afraid to say any thing about it to my brethren,
as I could have believed any thing in the world sooner
than that I should yet be a preacher. Yet the
Lord's ways are not our ways ; I had been a class-
leader for more than one year, and we had many a
happy season. The impression that I ought to preach
followed me, and there seemed to be a voice within
me urging me on to preach.

The preachers saw fit to license me to exhort,
and some time after gave me license to preach, ac-
cording to the rule of our Discipline. I commenced
with much fear and diffidence ; yet the brethren en-
couraged me, and told me to continue, and that per-
haps the Lord would yet use me as an instrument in
his hands to advance his cause. Upon this I con-
cluded to give myself wholly to the Lord, and to
follow the openings of his providence. In the mean
time the conference of 1845 approached. Brother
Jacoby told me to hold myself in readiness to go out
and labor among my countrymen, which I accord-
ingly did, and the same year was appointed to labor,
under the presiding elder, on Palmyra mission, Mis-
souri.

I went, in the name of the Lord, Avith a hope soon
to see some fruits of my labor; but for the first six

WILLIAM FIEGENBAUM. 275

months all was dark and discouraging, and the enemy
of my soul tempted me to go home and give it up.
But all this drew me nearer to the Savior and induced
me to lay my case before him. He strengthened and
helped me ; and while I have labored in this work, I
have had the pleasure of seeing many souls born
into the kingdom of God. I am thankful for the
number of my countrymen that have already been
brought to Christ. My own soul is happy in my
blessed Savior, and I am determined to press after
holiness, that finally, through the abounding grace of
God, I may be received into his kingdom.

EXPERIENCE OF WILLIAM FIEGENBAUM.

I was in my tenth year when my parents concluded
to emigrate to America. While we remained at the
tavern in Bremen, I found an old Hymn-Book, in
which I read the following lines :

" He who seeks for earthly treasures
Can not my disciple be."

This so affected my heart that I wept aloud, and
showed the lines to my father, and told him we were
not Christ's disciples, for we were seeking earthly
treasures. I was, however, comforted by my parents
when they told me that the hymn was not the word
of God, but man's composition.

In my school years, from twelve to sixteen, I often
thought if all these people, who call themselves
Christians, are so, then the Bible can not be true.
The time of my catechetical instruction was a very
sinful part of my life ; yet my conscience waked up
as I received the holy sacrament, and condemned me
for having taken it unworthily, and I went home with

276 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

a load of sin upon my heart. Still I had a desire to
partake of this holy sacrament worthily.

There was a report of some German Methodists in
Ohio who were said to have fallen from the faith.
Finally, a number of German Methodists came to
Missouri ; but the preachers were hated and perse-
cuted, and, in many places, deprived of the privilege of
preaching. Yet my parents opened their house and
allowed them to preach in it. After this I went to
St. Louis, and one evening went to the Methodist
church. The sermon awakened me to a sense of my
lost condition. The word was " quick and powerful,
and sharper than a two-edged sword, piercing to the
dividing asunder of joints and marrow, and was a dis-
cerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."
My heart was very much ajfected, and I at once re-
solved to join the Methodist Church. Now a voice,
as from my heavenly Father, came to me, to repent,
return, and be converted ; and to this was added the
exhortation of my brother and sister. This induced
me, on the next Sabbath, to go to the church again.
After the sermon there was prayer meeting ; but my
heart remained cold and indifferent. While penitents
were kneeling around the altar, I was induced by cu-
riosity to go up close and see who it was that cried so
earnestly for the pardon of his sins. It was my
brother, who had previously been a violent persecutor
of the children of God. He lay there pleading for
mercy, while the pious were offering up prayers for
his salvation. I was at once convicted of sin, and
sought to meet with the children of God. I spent
fourteen days seeking for pardon ; others prayed
with me j but though thus seeking I could not find.

WILLIAM FIEGENBAUM. 277

On the following Sabbath I went again. This was
a day of the Lord to my soul. The preacher, Rev
C. Jost, took for his text, "Come unto me all ye that
labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest."
After the sermon it was asked how it was with me, and
I was told that I must seek earnestly by faith ; for
the " kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but
righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost."
This I experienced, indeed, when I lay down in the
evening to sleep, and offered up my soul to God, that
he might seal it with the spirit of promise to the day
of redemption. The joy that I found in a union with
the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is not to be fully
expressed by human tongue. It was now my earnest
desire to live near to the Lord, and to follow after
holiness, without which no one shall see the Lord.

I had frequent impressions that I should preach,
even previous to my conversion, and these impres-
sions increased ten-fold afterward. The responsi-
bility of the ministerial office for some time de-
terred me ; yet my eyes were opened to see how all
men had corrupted their way before the Lord, and I
had an abiding impression on. my mind of the won-
derful love of God, which he manifested to the human
family. I was often so affected that I went to others,
and told them of their danger in neglecting their sal-
vation. My heart was at the same time filled with
joy and sorrow — the former from a view of God's
goodness, the latter from a view of man's lost con-
dition.

The impression that I should preach grew so strong
that I told some of my friends of it; and they ex-
horted me not to resist this impression. At first I

278 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

felt a great struggle within, yet I was convinced that it
was my duty to call sinners to repentance. I finally
resolved to devote myself wholly to the service of
the Lord. Now my soul was satisfied, and the Lord
strengthened me in knowledge and in his grace and
love to him. Soon after, I received license to preach.
At my first efforts the Lord strengthened and blessed
me. I commenced my labors in March, 1848, in the
name of God. Since then I have seen many come
from darkness to light. May the Lord keep us all
faithful, and bring us at last to praise him before his
throne !

EXPERIENCE OF JOHN L. WALTHER.

I was born the 10th of September, 1818, in Culm-
bach, a town in the kingdom of Bavaria, My parents
were members of the Lutheran Church, which, with
the Catholic Church, is supported by the state. The
spiritual life was so far lost sight of that scarcely any
but rationalistic preachers were allowed to preach the
Gospel. When I reached my seventh year, accord-
ing to the laws of the country, I had to go to school,
where, with other matters, I was compelled to com-
mit the catechism to memory. It was customary for
parents to select professions for their sons. My
parents designed me for the ministry, and i'n my
eleventh year they sent me to the sub-gymnasium, or
elementary school, of our town,to commence the pre-
paratory studies for the ministry. One of the teach-
ers, who had himself studied theology, but who was
a strict rationalist, gave instructions to the pupils.
From him I drank in the rationalism which was after-
ward nourished by the preacher who confirmed me.
The older I became the less inclination I had for the

JOHN L. TVALTHER. 279

profession to wliicli 1 was destined by my parents, and
against the ^vill of my mother I left the institution.
Dancing, drinking, and playing, in -which the preach-
ers themselves took part, and that, too, on the Sab-
bath, were very common; and so it was no wonder
that I, a young man, with a heart inclined to sin, like
thousands of others, fell a prey to the follies and
customs of our times.

Four of our family emigrated, one after the other,
to America. They wrote us many letters on the con-
dition of this country, and the manners and customs of
its inhabitants. These letters excited in me a desire
to follow them, and on the 11th of September, 1840,
I left my father-land and started for America. After
a tedious journey by land and a stormy and danger-
ous sea-voyage, I, with sixty other passengers, arrived
on the 1st of October in Baltimore. I soon found
that gold is not to be picked up on the street, and that
I must learn to work in order to support myself. I
met with a friendly reception, and obtained employ-
ment in a Methodist family.

During our sea-voyage I became acquainted with
an aged widow, who, in company with her daughter,
came over to visit her son, who had been in America
sixteen years, and who was then in Texas. Through
this acquaintance I was introduced to her family,
and with them I frequently visited a beautiful church,
and heard a talented and eloquent rationalist preacher.
The aged mother, seeking food for her soul, found no
pleasure in the sermons of this man, and induced her
daughter, to whom I was then betrothed, and myself
to go with her to another chmxh. Accordingly we
went to a small and indifferent-looking church of the

280 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

evangelical society, founded by the pious and talented
Albright. With the anointing from above we heard
a youth preach there the word of God as we had
never been accustomed to hear it.

One evening the sermon produced such an effect
upon the heart of my intended bride that she prayed
for mercy till she fell unconscious on the floor. I
had never in my life seen such a thing ; and, fearing
for her life, I hastened to the altar, and with the aid
of some of the women I carried her out of the church.
After some exertion we brought her to consciousness
again. My heart also was affected, yet I resisted
the calls of the Spirit, and left off going to the
church.

After my marriage, and, the death of my mother-
in-law, we removed to the west, in order to visit my
relatives. In Cincinnati we met my brother-in-law
and sister, who were then members of the Methodist
Church. After a few days' sojourn with them I found
I could not remain, for they prayed too much to suit
me. My parents in the mean time had followed their
children to America. Father was now dead, and my
mother lived with one of my brothers. I went with
my wife to see them, and found that they too had
prayers in the family, and that my brother had be-
come a Methodist. Out of respect to him we went to
the German Methodist church, and heard brother
Nast preach. My wife was awakened, and found her
Savior in the pardon of her sins. This made a deep
impression on my mind, and I joined the Church with
her, and sought for pardon ; but as I stopped seek-
ing too soon, and took awakening for conversion, I
had no power to resist the temptations of the enemy.

JOHN L. "VYALTHER. 281

I began to find fault with my brethren, and overlooked
my own sins and fell back.

After this I passed one of the most unfortunate
years of my life ; it was true that the conduct of some
old members gave offense; yet a voice within said to
me, what is that to thee ? follow thou thy Savior. In
vain did I seek to find rest by staying away from the
church; in vain did I seek by sporting and worldly
amusements to regain my former cheerfulness. My
rest was gone; I went from one sin to another, con-
scious of my wrong, but I had no power to resist. I
sought to keep my wife away from church, in which,
after long persuasion, I succeeded. Yet, thank God!
she did not cease to pray, notwithstanding she was
kept from church for two years through my influ-
ence. She kept up family ptayer, though I begged
her to forego it, because I could not endure to hear
her pray. She often prayed in secret, in which I
often surprised her, and felt keener reproofs of con-
science than ever before. Not long after she was
taken very sick, and the physician who was called ex-
pressed the opinion that she could not live many
days. Weeping I stood at the foot of her bed, re-
flecting on my sad condition. Deep sighs arose from
my troubled breast, and when her feeble eyes opened
she said, in broken sentences, " See, Walther, all this
has come upon you because you would not pray."
These words fell with weight upon my heart, and then
and there I vowed to God to serve him with all my
heart. Through the mercy of God my wife gradu-
ally recovered from her sickness, and I felt myself
the more bound to perform my vow. Brother Kuhl
was then stationed in St. Louis, where we now re-

24

282 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

sided, and held a protracted meeting in the Wash-
Street church, in which he was aided by brother
Koeneke. Without the knowledge of my wife I went
to church every evening. God blessed the word, and
sinners were awakened by scores. My poor heart
was melted under the influence of the word of God,
and every evening I was among the seeking penitents
at the altar of prayer. One evening after another
passed away, and sinners were converted on my right
and left, and praised the Lord for his goodness and
grace, while I was compelled to leave the church
with a heavy heart. During the day I was sad and
sorrowful, and at home said but little. I read my
Bible and prayed in secret, but my wife noticed my
conduct, and asked me the reason of it. I replied,
" I am sick ;" for I foolishly was ashamed to disclose
to her the condition of my heart. Of evenings I
went to church, yet weeks passed away and I found
no peace.

One evening I prayed to God earnestly to show me
the hinderance why I could not obtain the precious
treasure. Then it occurred to me that I had dis-
owned my Lord before her who had for two years
earnestly prayed for me. Now I saw that I must
bear the cross and confess the Lord ; so the next
morning I took the Bible and said to my wife, " Come,
let us hold family worship." My wife was alarmed
and thought I was only going to mock her, yet did
not say a word. I read a chapter and tried to pray,
but could only utter a few broken sentences. I arose
from my knees with a heavy heart, and hastened out
into the city. I spent the whole day in prayer and
meditation on the word of God, and in the evcnina: I

JO UN L, WALT II Ell. 283

went to tlie churcli "where a watch meeting was held.
I again with others laj at the altar of prayer, wrest-
ling and praying for a new heart; as I then tried to
give mj heart fully to Jesus, I apprehended him by
the eye of faith, and heard the word spoken through
God's Spirit, " Go in peace, thy faith hath saved
thee." This was between twelve and one o'clock on
the first of January, 1848. 0, how often has the
recollection of that hour cheered me in the midst of
trials and temptations ! With a joyful heart I went
home, where I found my wife already gone to sleep.
I praised God silently, laid me down to rest, but could
scarcely sleep, and the next morning I arose with a
joyful heart. After breakfast was over I took my
Bible and read, " Blessed be God and the Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath begotten us again to
a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from
the dead." I fell on my knees, and with tears of joy
I praised and thanked God Avith a loud voice. My
wife who had silently looked on my conduct was
cheered and encouraged; her prayer was answered,
and her unbelieving husband was converted. We
wept tears of joy together, then held a prayer meet-
ing and a love-feast all in our own room, and I related
to her how my Savior had given me a new heart.

Soon after this we both joined the Methodist
Church, and found in brother Kuhl a good friend and
counselor, who soon gave me an opportunity to im-
prove my talent by teaching a day-school. I, in suc-
cession, received license to exhort and to preach, and
since 1851 I have been a traveling preacher of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, through the abounding
grace of God, to whom be praise and honor forever !

284 GEEMAN MISSIONARIES.

CHAPTER XXII.

EXPERIENCE OF J. M. WINKLER.

I WAS born the 25th of January, 1824,inMandach,
Rheinpfalz, Bavaria. My parents were strict members
of the Roman Catholic Church. When only four or
five years old, my mother used to lead me to the
church, Avhere we kneeled down before the images and
paintings that were found there, and said our prayers
according to the light and knowledge we then had.
As I took especial delight in seeing the boys before
the altar, waiting on the priests during mass, and
from time to time ringing the little bells which they
carried, I wished very much also to become like them,
an acolyte or mass-servant. In a short time I had
learned the Latin prayer, as well as the different cere-
monies of the mass service ; and before I was full
seven years old, I was offered as mass-servant to the
priest, who was much rejoiced to receive me. No
one in the wide world felt happier than I did when I
was clothed in the dress prescribed for my office.

When I was nine years old my beloved mother was
taken very sick, and father sent me for the priest,
that he might come and administer to her the last
sacraments. When the priest arrived Ave all had to
leave the room. My mother confessed, for the last
time, and Avas absolved, and after this Ave were allowed
to go into the room again. The sacrament of the

J. M. WINKLER. 285

Lord's supper was then administered to her, and she
received extreme unction ; and in about fifteen min-
utes after these ceremonies her spirit left its mortal
tenement. As I, in my child-like simplicity, thought
over these things, and compared them all with the
doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church, I felt very
well satisfied in that all had been done on the part of
the Church and the priest to secure her salvation.
But how was I disturbed in my mind, and disap-
pointed in my expectation, when told by the priest
that my mother was not yet in heaven, but that
she now found herself in purgatory, and that my
father would yet have to pay a certain sum of money
to have mass read for her to bring her out ! This was
too much for my tender, loving, and child-like feelings
toward my dear mother. Half sorrowful and half
provoked at the intelligence of the priest, I went
home from the school-house in the afternoon, and be-
tween me and my father the following conversation
occurred :

"Father," said I, "has our priest power to forgive
sins?"

"Yes, my child," was his answer; "yes indeed;
for our Lord Jesus says, 'Whose sins ye remit, they
are remitted.' " " Now," I answered, " if this is true,
why is mother yet in purgatory ? The priest forgave
her sins just before she died, and to-day he told me
she was not in heaven yet, but remained in purgatory,
where she had to do penance for her sins ; and you
must pay him some more money, and he will read
mass for her, to bring her out of purgatory, and send
her to heaven." " All that the priests tell us we must
believe and do," was the answer of my father ; " for

"V

286 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

they arc infallible." "Father," said I, "there ia
something here not clear to my mind. If our priest
has poAver to forgive sins, then mother is not in purg-
atory. Now, do you keep your money, since the
priest has no occasion to say any further mass for
her." My father was much astonished at my expres-
sions on this subject, and said nothing more, but
went to the priest and told him my views of the
pardon of sins and purgatory.

Up to this time I had stood high in the estimation
of our priest, and he had previously expressed himself
to my father, that " something might be made out of
this boy ;" and, as I afterward learned from my
father, they had already commenced making arrange-
ments for me to study for the priesthood. Now, all
the interest the priest had taken in me was brought
to a close, and his confidence and the promises which
he had made me were at an end. Excited and angry
he came home with my father, and said to me,
" Whence have you received such devilish thoughts ?
Most certainly from the heretical Protestants ; but I
will soon cure you, mind that. Not so, Mr. Wink-
ler, not so," continued he, turning to my father. My
father stood with folded hands, and his eyes full of
tears, looking up toward heaven, for he was much
concerned on my account. Had I lived in the dark
centuries the priest would soon have put an end to
my freedom or my life by some kind of inquisition.
Up to this time I was a good Catholic ; and already in
my seventh year, I had been admitted to confession.

I will here relate an occurrence that took place in
my eleventh year, which will show that at that early
day I had very little confidence in the poAVcr of the

J. M. WINKLER. 287

priest, or the ceremonies of the Church. It was cus-
tomary for our priest, once a year, to consecrate water
for baptismal purposes, and this was put in a font,
and was considered holy. It was my duty, as his at-
tendant, to procure this holy water when it was
wanted. On one occasion a child was to be bap-
tized ; I went for the water, and found it frozen
solid. I immediately ran out to a little stream near
by and got a bucket of water, took a bowl full of it
to the priest and poured the rest into the font ; and I
have no doubt that the child baptized with the water
direct from the branch fared as well, so far as baptism
is concerned, as if it had been baptized with the
priest's consecrated water ; but woe would have been
to me if the priest had found it out.

It was impressed on our minds to go to confession
four times a year, till we reached the thirteenth year.
Then we were admitted to the sacrament of the Lord's
supper and dismissed from the day-school. In my
fourteenth year I was confirmed by a bishop, and
now, according to the doctrine of the Church, I was
a good Christian. About this time I learned that
there was a book called the Bible, and that it was
highly esteemed and prized by the Protestants. Cu-
riosity excited me to go to a Protestant neighbor, who
had a son of my own age, through whose kindness I
came into possession of a New Testament. I received
it with the assurances of my Protestant comrade, that
there was nothing in all the Bible to prove that the
priest had power to forgive sins, or that we were to
pray to departed saints, or call upon them for their
intercessions, or that there is such a place as purga-
tory. I read ray Protestant book from beginning to

288 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

end, two or three times, and it appeared to me to be
the wrong place to find such doctrines. From that
time I ceased to go to confession, as I had no faith
in it.

I would here remark, however, that after I left
home as a journeyman to work at my trade, I was in
duty bound by the laws and regulations of our coun-
try to go to confession and to the sacrament at Easter.
My employer was a strict Catholic and required it of
me. A comrade and myself started for the confes-
sional at six o'clock in the morning, but as my faith
was much shaken in the doctrines of the Catholic
Church I took another direction and went to the beer-
house, where I staid drinking till ten; I then went
to the church, when high mass was performed, and
the sacrament was administered. I was now in an
embarrassing condition. It was required of me to
bring a printed ticket to my employer as evidence
that I had been at confession and taken the sacra-
ment. I did not dare to return home without my
ticket, and how to get one I did not know. My com-
rade went to sacrament, and the boy whose duty it
was to distribute the tickets, in a mistake gave him
two; so he supplied me with one, and I went home
and showed it to my employer, and every thing
passed off well.

Some seven years after this, while away from home,
I received a letter from an old acquaintance who had
come to America some years before, in which he said
much about the happiness of the people of this coun-
try, and also told me of his conversion.

This letter waked up in me strong desires to come
to America. Such letters written to Germany by

J. M. WINKLER. 289

many of our German Methodists are so many mis-
sionaries, and have often been the means of awaken-
ings and conversions among those who have read them.
Soon afterward my father wrote to me that many
of our friends were going to Amei'ica, and if I wished
to go with them I might do so. When I came home
I found that a day of general confession was appoint-
ed and all who washed to go were required to go
to confession, and receive absolution from the priest.
I refused to go because my faith had been shaken in
the doctrines of the Romish Church from the time
my mother died, and still more so after I had read
the New Testament.

My father told me I must go to confession or he
would not give me money to pay my passage to
America. He was afraid that if he let me go without
confession and absolution I would finally stray off
from the Church. As I wanted to come to America
very much, and had no other means of getting the
money, I went to confession, and told the priest my
doubts of his power to pardon sins. I was at the
same time conscious that I was a great sinner, and
deeply awakened to a sense of my lost condition,
yet the priest did not point me to the Lamb of God
who taketh aAvay the sins of the world, but to Virgin
Mary. He considered my case a very hopeless one,
and directed me to kneel for one hour on a small
stick about as thick as my finger three times a day,
and say a certain number of prayers to the Virgin
Mary; and when I ate bread he said I must put
ashes on it instead of butter or molasses. I thought
after I got away from him, You may eat the ashes
yourself, for I shall not.

25

^^^^

290 GERMAN MISSIONARIES,

I was then deeply sunken in sins, very wild and
imrestrained, but often felt that the Spirit of God
wrought powerfully in my soul. When I gave my
father the parting hand and bade him farewell, the
old man deeply affected thus addressed me: "My
son, change your life when you get to America."
These words broke up the deep of my heart, and
weeping I left him and the parental home. I felt
that I was a sinner, but how to be delivered from sin
I did not knoAV.

While we were crossing the ocean, we had four
days and nights of dreadful storm, for we were driven
too far north among the icebergs. When our ship with
cargo and all on board were in great danger, our
captain told us that in a few minutes we might all be
in eternity. In this time of peril many of my Cath-
olic countrymen betook themselves to their prayer-
books, and the scene now appears to me like that on
the ship where the prophet Jonas found himself.
Then, those heathens called upon their gods to save
them; these to the holy Virgin Mary, Joseph, Peter,
or John. Our captain, as far as T could judge, was a
praying Christian. As he looked over his company
of passengers, he fell on his knees, folded his hands
and looked up, praying without a book, which seemed
to me most singular. While he prayed, the tears like
large drops of rain rolled from his eyes. He prayed
in the English language, and as I listened to him with
astonishment, I could understand nothing but the
name of Jesus, which in English sounds similar to
the German word. I was so affected by this prayer
that I trembled like a leaf. As I had more confidence
in the captain's prayer than all the rest, so I resolved

^ J. M. WINKLER. 291

to call on the captain's God. I sought a retired place,
and for the first time in my life I prayed without
a book. I promised God if he Avould bring me safe
to America, to serve him with soul and body all the
days of my life. Never before did I feel my sins
like a heavy load upon my soul. The Lord heard
our prayers, and under his protection we landed safely
on the 5th of July, 1846, in the city of New York.

From this place we set out for Lawrenceburg, In-
diana, and after a journey of fourteen days we arrived
there in the evening. John Bittner, one of my old
associates, and formerly a member of my Church,
but who had now with his whole family been con-
verted, received us kindly into his house. As we
were about to retire to rest the first evening, he
brought a very large book and a small one and laid
them on the table. With astonishment I fixed my
eyes on the large book, and it appeared to me like
the old missal which I used to carry from right to left
before the altar when I was a small boy in the service
of the priest. Brother Bittner opened the book and
read from it in the German language, when they sung
a hymn out of the small book, and we then all kneeled
down while brother Bittner prayed. The good man
appeared to have access to the tree of life; for he
called earnestly, powerfully, and mightily to the
Lord, The grounds of my old faith were anew
shaken to the foundation. I discovered that the large
book was a German family Bible, and the small one
a collection of hymns. On the next morning family
worship was again attended to, and so on regularly
mornings and evenings.

After a few days I changed my lodging and took

292 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

up my residence with Nicholas Hawbold, also a Ger-
man Methodist, who had belonged to the Roman
Catholic Church in the old father-land. Here in our
beloved America he had found his blessed Savior in
the pardon of his sins, and then was a class-leader in
the Church. I found in my new home a loving
Christian family, who proved a blessing to me. The
family altar was erected and regularly surrounded, so
that even at that time I formed a love for family
worship, which I have retained to this day. Brother
John Phetzing was then stationed preacher in Law-
renceburg. After I had heard him a few times hia
conference met and he was removed. In his place
brother John Geyer, a true son of thunder, was ap-
pointed to the station. I also went to hear him, and
as the truth had taken such deep hold upon me I
made known my condition one day to one of my
Catholic friends, who reproved me sharply, and told
me I would soon be a fool if I did not stay away
from the Methodist church. Upon this I promised
that I would be blind or lame rather than go to Meth-
odist meeting again. At the same time my Catholic
friends told me that I must change my place of
boarding, and not remain any longer with Mr. Haw-
bold, or he would soon make a crazy Methodist out
of me. One of them declared to me that he had a
certain flask in which he kept "Methodist drops," and
that some time in the night, while I was in a deep
sleep, he would come and administer me some of
these drops; upon which I would be compelled to
become a Methodist, and that this had already been
successfully tried on a great many. I was very much
alarmed at this, and for several nights I could not

' '-' J. M. WINKLER. 293

sleep. If I heard the least noise in the house mj
fears were excited, and I imagined I saw Mr. Haw-
bold coming with his flask.

But to God be everlasting thanks for the precious
drops of blood which the Savior shed for the pardon
of my sins. As I apprehended by faith the atoning
blood and appropriated it to my soul, my high-priest,
Jesus Christ, forgave me all my sins. The Spirit of
God witnessed with my spirit that I was a child of
God, and as the atoning blood was applied to my
heart I became a Methodist and a true Christian. I
had hard struggles to pass through, many hinderances
to overcome, and a bitter cup of penitential grief to
drink before I obtained this blessing; but so much
the sweeter was the oil of joy and gladness which
the Lord poured in full measure into my soul. I was
not willing to be converted openly, at the altar of
prayer in the church, and in the presence of so
many people. I sought the Savior in private by
night and by day, in the woods, in my closet, and on
my bed, and found him not. I prescribed for myself a
mode of cure for my moral leprosy, as Naaman of old;
but my heavenly Father would have me, not only
truly converted, but my pride fully humbled.

On the 9th of November, 1846, after a sermon by
brother Geyer, in a house full of people, upon
invitation I went forward, fell on my knees before
the altar of prayer, and cried aloud for mercy. The
whole altar was surrounded with seeking penitents.
Earnest prayers were offered up to God for them.
My soul was in great distress. I felt that mercy
alone could meet my case. All my righteousnesses
were as filthy rags, and I could not offer my own merits,

294 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

for what merit can a sinful and polluted soul possess?
But I thank God that I could, by faith, appropriate
the merit which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

"And as I thus before liim lay
There dawned on me a brighter day;
The darkest shadows of the night
Were followed by the morning light."

0, blessed joy! 0, happy and rich comfort that I
found in that hour ! Four weeks after this I visited
my sisters and brothers-in-law, who had purchased
land a few miles from town. On my arrival at my
sister's, I told what the Savior had done for me. To
all this my relatives made no objection, only they
said that I should not have become a Methodist, but
should have remained in the bosom of the Catholic
Church. At first they appeared friendly toward me,
but finally they became enraged against me, and I
came near suffering the fate of Stephen before the
high council. But I had great liberty to confess my
Savior. The protecting hand of God was over me,
and so I escaped.

Soon after my conversion I felt moved to call
others to repentance, and I believe God commissioned
me six years before I received license from the
Church to labor in his vineyard. Since I started out
as a traveling preacher my Savior has been my sup-
port. At first it was a hard task, but I -am still in-
creasing in strength. I have frequently had the
pleasure of seeing some of my former faith con-
verted to God. Thousands of my countrymen are
now rejoicing on earth in the love of their Savior,
and many of them have already overcome through
the blood of the Lamb, and are now before the throne

J. M. WINKLER. 295

of God. Among them I can count my beloved father,
of whose conversion I shall now give a brief account.

Soon after my conversion I became a colporteur,
and went through the country distributing Bibles and
talking to the people. At this my brother-in-law,
who Avas a Roman Catholic, took offense, and wrote
to my father in Germany that I had become deranged
by reading the Bible, and that I was now running
through the country with a Bible under my arm try-
ing to make others like myself — that I was neglect-
ing my family and was in a sad condition. This re-
port excited the sympathy of my father, and he set
out for America to see me. When he arrived at my
brother-in-law's he wrote to me as follows : " My son,
if you have so much sense left yet as to know that I
am your father, and that you are my son, I have a
great desire to see you." I soon started off to see
him, not knowing any thing of my brother-in-law's
communication to him. When I arrived a-t the house
he looked at me with amazement, and I looked at
him astonished to see him in America in his old days.
He said to me, "How long is it since you began
to get better?" I told him I did not know that I
had been sick. He wondered to find me in my right
mind, and I was glad to see him.

He afterward visited me in Ohio, and on one Sab-
bath went with me to one of my appointments. I
prayed the Lord to help me ; and while I was talk-
ing, to the people my father was very much affected,
and Avept profusely. After meeting, he asked me
whether I had gone to any college in America. I
took out my Bible, and showed it to him, and said
to him, " This is the college I have studied in." He

296 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

■was deeply awakened, and commenced seeking re-
ligion. After I was sent to Illinois, as a missionary
to the Germans, my father expressed a strong desire
to spend the remainder of his days with me, and
started for Illinois. He was taken very sick on the
way, and prayed very earnestly to God for the pardon
of his sins, and the Lord heard and answered his
prayer and blessed him. His Roman Catholic friends,
however, sent for the priest, but before he arrived the
Lord converted him. When the priest came father
told him, " My High-Priest in heaven has pardoned
my sins ;" and soon afterward he died in peace.

My heart rejoices that I came to America, and that
here I found my Savior. I am glad that the merciful
God put it into the hearts of his servants of the Meth-
odist Episcopal Church to send German missionaries
among us poor scattered Gei-mans, deeply sunken in
sin, to offer to us the salvation that is in Christ. May
the Lord long spare the fathers of the Church ; and
may we who come after continue to unfold the stand-
ard of the cross ! The good leaven has already spread
through the whole country ; and not only here in
America, but in my old father-land, in different places,
is this leaven beginning to spread. May the blessing
of God rest upon his servants wherever his word is
preached ! We may speak different languages here,
but when we meet in our Father's house above, Ave
shall all understand each other, and know even as we
are known.

CHARLES A. E. HERTEL. 297

CHAPTER XXIII.

EXPERIENCE OF CHARLES AUGUSTUS EM-
MANUEL HERTEL.

I WAS born on the 12tli of January, 1824, in the
city of Speier, Bavai'ia, Germany, when my father,
George Ernst Christian Hertel, being counselor at
the court of Hesse-Darmstadt, Avas on a journey,
taking my mother with him. There I was baptized,
and received the name " Charles Augustus Em-
manuel ;" yet had no citizenship in that place, but
was brought soon afterward to Oppenheim on the
Rhine, where I lived till my fifteenth year. My first
religious instruction, after I could read, was from the
small Lutheran catechism, portions of which I soon
committed to memory. Besides this I learned many
hymns, my morning and evening prayers, and heard
the blessing and thanksgiving pronounced at the table,
all of which made but little impression at that time
upon my young but sinful heart. As I grew up, great
calculations about my future existence were made and
passed between father and mother, especially as I was
the first-born of my father's second matrimonial es-
tate, there being no children then living from his first
wife. As he was at that time already between sixty
and seventy years, he looked with more anxiety upon
me, and took more pains to give me all the educational
advantages that could be had in the place where we

298 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

lived. Accordingly I was sent to a private school,
kept by a pastor of the Lutheran Clmrch, a mostl^
learned man, to begin the studies of the dead and liv- .
ing languages, and the different branches of science. •
After his removal from our place I "went a short time
to the public school, and had, besides, a private
teacher for the French language, till, at the request
of several families, a theological gentleman, who had
finished his course of studies in the University, and
was now a candidate for the ministry, opened a pri-
vate school, to Avhich my father sent me, and where I-,-
remained till I visited the regular gymnasium or pre- -
paratory school for the University.

In the year 1835 my father was struck with paraly-
sis on one side, but cured of it, so as to perform his
duties ; but in traveling every month to Darmstadt,
the residence of the court, he took me along in order
to do the writing for him, and to be at his command
in case of sickness. On one of these occasional visits,
in the month of February, 1836, 1 was delivered from
a sudden death, or the crippling of my body, by the im-
mediate interposition of God's providence, which I
will relate here to his glory, in as few words as
possible.

In this month the sinful practice of carnivals, or
masked balls, is prevalent in the old country. There
was then such a ball to be held in the theater of the
court, which was arranged into one large ball-room.
Our host, in whose hotel my father had lodged a few
days every month for about seven years, had the
restaurationof the ball, and having a son of about my
age, his wife asked permission of my father to take
me along as company to their son, and received it

I

CHARLES A. E. HERTEL. 299

under the promise to take care of me. From the
moment of our arrival the good lady was employed in
arranging her counters with refreshments, and I was
left to promenade in the saloon and to look upon the
masked and foolishly-dressed persons as they came in.
I took a seat on a sofa, under the private box of the
Grand Duke, and being so much taken up by the cos-
tumes of the strolling persons, hardly perceived a
large and very heavy ladder that was standing just
before me, reaching with the top end to the box above,
where several wax candles were yet to be lighted;
presently, an audible voice, that seemed to come from
behind, said to me, " Go away from here." Suddenly
I turned and looked aside, but no person was in my
immediate neighborhood, and behind me was the wall.
Half frightened I rose and Avalked briskly away, but
had not reached the other side of the stage, when I
heard a tremendous crash ; and, lo, that ladder had
given way on the polished dancing-floor, while a man
was stepping up upon it in order to light the candles,
and fell with its upper end just upon the place where
I had been sitting a few seconds before. The man
was taken up somewhat injured, so far as I can recol-
lect, and I was saved by God's especial care over me.
On the 26th of January, 1837, my father died sud-
denly from apoplexy, when I was thirteen years old,
and with this sad event many of my worldly pros-
pects were blasted. Shortly before his death he gave
each of his children a copy of the Holy Bible, except
my youngest sister, who was only nine months old
when he left this earthly tabernacle. He himself
read this book not only at daytime, but almost every
night, and we generally found it in the morning lying

300 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

on the table in the sitting-room "when we came in. I
often saw him stand before the window praying ; and
I can never forget his folded hands, and silvery locks,
and raised head, looking up toward heaven and sigh-
ing to God ardently also for me. This made a deep
impression upon my mind, and it has never left me.

In the year 1838 I was confirmed, having had three
stated ministers of the Lutheran Church for cate-
chisers and religious instructors ; but none of these
three so-called theologians told me of my sins, or that
I must be born again by the Spirit of God. On the
first day of Pentecost, that is on Sunday, after a mere
recitation of the catechism, I was with a number of
other boys and girls confirmed ; and, on the next day,
We were at the regular annual dancing and other
worldly amusements of the place, that were held in a
beautiful little grove, about a mile from Oppenheim.
Here we sported in honor of Bacchus and other gods,
not much better than the heathen, shouting for joy on
account of being free now from the hard yoke of
learning and studying the doctrines and principles of
our religion. In the same summer I was saved from
an early death and a watery grave, on a bathing oc-
casion of our private school in the river Rhine, by the
strong hand and active swimming of our teacher. Dr.
Frederic Eich, now Professor of Languages in the
Gymnasium at Worms. Thanks to him, and glory to
God, who gave him power to swim after me and
rescue me just at the moment of my third and last
rising from the depth of the river !

The time had now arrived for me to go to a higher
school, and accordingly I was sent from home to the
Gymnasium of Darmstadt, in the spring session of

CHAELES A. E. HERTEL. 301

1839; but, the next year, I went into the first regi-
ment of infantry, having the personal promise of the
present Grand Duke, Ludwig III, that he would help
me forward. About eighteen months after that, the
good Lord led me away ; wherefore I ever will praise
him, for his word is better than that of princes; but
time and space allow me not to detail here the ways
of his gracious Providence. What should I do now ?
Well, I had always from my youth a desire to study
medicine and to become a physician, or an ofiicer in
the army. As this last was now made void, I accord-
ingly went to the University and enrolled myself as
licentiate of Veterinary Surgery, not being allowed to
enter the regular Medical Department, because I had
not completed the course of study in the Gymnasium.
But this is in Germany a very good, highly-esteemed,
and by the state sanctioned, profession ; and a young
man is required to study three years before he can
graduate.

Here was my religion totally at an end, and no
wonder; for I arrived at the city on Sunday morning,
went first to a former schoolmate of mine, a student
of theology, and after dinner he said to me with a very
serious face: "Now, come with me and I will show
you right away where we get the best — beer !" Ac-
cordingly he led me to the so-called " Crooked Goose."
After a year had elapsed my mother found that she
could not provide me with means to finish my studies,
because we were under the Code Napoleon. I there-
fore went home and worked with a house-carpenter
for one summer and fall; and, in the winter of 1844,
I visited an architectural school in order to pass an
examination the next spring. But I was not admitted

302 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

to it, because a great number of young men had
already passed it and could not be engaged. On the
14th of November, 1845, my good mother died ; but I
confidently expect to see her with father in heaven.
Now my three sisters were scattered, and I left alone,
so to speak, with my cousin, a butcher, who afterward
held a liquor-house, where I acted as bar-keeper till
1846, when I went to my old teacher in Worms to
study Book-Keeping and Commercial Arithmetic. In
the fall of this year I obtained a very good situation
as clerk in a large lumber business and a wine cellar.
Up to this time I had hardly been in a church half a
dozen times, but lived a very wicked life in Sabbath-
breaking and drinking especially; my Bible, that I
had received from my dear father, I gave away, and
did not care any thing about God or religion ; in fact,
I heard nothing of it. Cursing and swearing I
learned in the army in my sixteenth year; drinking
and fighting in the University ; mocking at sin and
blaspheming God in the bar-room, and so I came
pretty near being a desperado. I left my last place
in 1847, with the intention to go to America, but be-
fore this point was gained I had seen many a hard
day and many a sleepless night, and sometimes the
devil urged me mightily to commit suicide. I became
poor, wretched, forsaken of friends, robbed of all my
means and clothing, without shelter or a resting-place,
when God alone told me one day, it was I believe on
the twenty-second of December, 1847, at four o'clock,
P. M., before the city of Darmstadt, " Go to thy sis-
ter." She was sixty-three miles off, but away I
started on foot, and marched the whole distance, till
next day at six o'clock, P. M., resting but three times.

CHARLES A. E. IIERTEL. 303

There I staid with her parents-in-law, for she was now
married, and on the 16th of August, 1848, she, her
husband, brother Hermann Briick, and myself started
for America. My sister had loaned me the money to
come here. We reached safely the city of New York,
on the 5th of October, having no particular friends or
a knowledge of the English language, and were some-
times in great trials and distress, without knowing or
feeling that God himself was indeed our friend, and
had already for years been preparing the way for a
most happy future in communion with him. By and
by he led us into the neighborhood of the First Ger-
man Methodist Episcopal Church, in Second-street,
New York; and, in the month of December, it so
happened that out of curiosity we went to hear Meth-
odist preaching and to see those " peculiar people,"
the Methodists, of whom we had often heard very
singular and often bad things.

The first preacher I heard was old father Tiemann,
a local preacher ; but under the preaching and inde-
fatigable labors of the Rev. C. H. Doering, I was con-
vinced of my dreadful, sinful state, as well by nature
as by practice, and after many an inward struggle and
wrestling with Jesus, the sinner's friend, I was en-
abled to believe on him for forgiveness of all my past
sins, and regeneration of my wicked heart, becoming a
new creature in him who loved me and washed me in
his own blood. This event, changing my whole in-
ward and outward life, took place in the month of
January, 1849; and about the same time I joined the
Church on probation.

It was but a short time after my conversion that I,
never dreaming or feeling any desire before, but

304 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

rather a dislike to become a minister of the Gospel,
now felt a singular movement in my soul or spirit to
do something for God more particular than a general
Christian life required. It was neither a wish, nor a
desire, neither a self-created and nourished thought,
nor an ambitious aim of standing in the pulpit in
order to talk merely to the people, nor was it a feeling
pride to be somebody and to shine in the world, al-
though I had many such desires in former years. It
was, if I should describe it as nearly as possible, a
singular influence upon my spirit, sometimes moving
mightily the feelings of my heart with joy or fear
toward God and men, different from those feelings of
joyful gratitude, or fearful love, arising from the
knowledge of my own conversion and the respon-
sibility therewith upon me enjoined for remaining
faithful and steadfast; sometimes inspiring my mind
with the great as well as awful and lovely truths of
the Gospel, and chasing thought after thought, making
me, nolens volens, preach at any place where I was,
that is silently. It was a deep impression, but not
always equally clear and forcible, varying according to
my own thinking and reasoning about it, that I should
lead sinners to Christ; wherefore I went around to
see my friends, and to talk to them about God and
their salvation.

One night I went up to brother Doering's room to
give instructions to his niece in the German language,
and on that occasion I told him I believed I should do
something in the vineyard of the Lord. His short but
only answer was, "Well, make it a subject of prayer."
He never gave me more encouragement, and I am
now very glad of it. I was willing already to go at

CHARLES A. E. HERTEL. 305

any time and to any place of the world; but God had
to prepare me first for the practical part of the pas-
toral work, and therefore he led me in his infallible
wisdom along a very hard, but a very good way. I
Avas taken sick in the month of April, 1849, with
typhus fever, in the month of June with an attack
of the cholera that was prevailing so much at that
time, and in July I was taken down with dysentery
and a cramp hiccough, that kept me for seven days
and nights almost strangling. In these states of
disease I was greatly prostrated, but wonderfully
strengthened in the spiritual man. I saw scenes
which I never had seen before ; for not only the dif-
ferent preachers of the city and vicinity came, spoke to
me about my soul's salvation, and prayed at my bed-
side with me, but also the members of the Church,
male and female, were all preaching to and praying
with me ; so that I was daily kept before the throne of
grace in open and silent prayer, and God in his great
mercy heard these prayers, and not only saved me
from bodily death, but made me a pastor in his own
school.

My present wife had arrived from Germany as a
Roman Catholic on the 19th of June, of that year.
She saw me in this sorrowful, but to me blessed, con-
dition. She was humbled and converted. On the 2d
of September we were joined in holy matrimony by
brother Doering, in whose house I lived from the
beginning of the year, and where I remained till he
went to Germany. God also destroyed by these
humiliations my business career, in order to take care
of me himself. After six months of probation I was
admitted into full membership. Shortly after that
26

306 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

I was licensed to exhort, and in a few weeks I received
license to preach. On the 26th of January, 1850,
the very day on which, thirteen years previously, my
best earthly hopes were thrown aside by the death
of my father, I was sent out to travel under the
presiding elder, and directed to Rev. John Swahlen to
supply our German mission in Newark, New Jersey,
and alternately to help at the Washington-Street
mission in New York. This was something of a
hard beginning on account of the state of the society
in Newark.

In the month of May, 1850, I was sent to Brook-
lyn, New York, after joining the New York confer-
ence as a traveling preacher on probation. Brother
Doering went on his mission to Germany, and Rev.
Casper Jost, from Quincy, Illinois, was appointed to
Second-Street, in New York, but did not arrive till
the end of August. Therefore, Rev. John C. Lyon,
presiding elder, took me away from Brooklyn to sup-
ply the old mother Church, where I had been con-
verted, and from whence I had been sent out. This
was a trying arrangement for as young a minister
as I was; yet God helped me, as I was resolved to
be wholly sanctified unto him. My first sermon for
the next day — Sunday morning — was founded upon
the words, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they
shall see God." Glory to him who is worthy of all
glory alone !

After brother Jost had arrived, I was called to take
charge of our mission in Albany and Troy, New
York. This was a new and a hard trial for me, but
I went in the fear of God. Besides, I had the super-
vision over Schenectady. In the month of May,

CHARLES A. E. HERTEL. 307

1851, the Bishop sent me to Poughkeepsie, -where
the preacher had been dropped, because he could not
pass his examination at the conference. This was a
most trying appointment, for he labored against us,
and half of my members were with him; but about
four months afterward they were scattered, and we
had peace and prosperity. At the next session I
was appointed to Poughkeepsie circuit, embracing one
hundred and thirty -five miles to travel; and I had
the supervision of Calicoon circuit, which made one
hundred and seventy miles around. I moved three
times with my family and lost my horse on the road.

In the year 1853, when our conference was held at
Kingston, I was appointed to Buffalo, about five hun-
dred miles north, with the supervision of Buffalo cir-
cuit, where a younger man named Kurtz had to go.
The following year I remained, but received brother
William Buettner to this circuit. There I had two
blessed years, and many found the Lord. Several
new preaching-places were established that are now
good missions with good churches in them.

When the year 1855 came round I was appointed
to Rochester, where God blessed me richly and abund-
antly, and many souls were converted to God. From
May, 1857, to 1858, I labored in the old mission in
New York, and that year was the great revival time,
of which we also had our blessed share. Now I am
here in San Francisco, California, and praise the Lord
for what he has done for such an unworthy man as I
am. But I am resolved to spend my life in the serv-
ice of the Lord forever.

I wish to say that all my sisters and their husbands
are children of God and members of the Methodist

808 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

Episcopal Cliurch. One of them, also, is a mission-
ary in the Rock River conference. God made me the
instrument of bringing two of my sisters to Christ
when we were in Poughkeepsie ; and my prayer is
that Ave may all meet at the right hand of God, where
we shall relate better things of the mercy and grace
of the Lord than we can do it here with pen and ink.

GEORGEE ANDRE. 309

CHAPTER XXIV.

GEORGE ANDRE— FREDERIC KOPP— HENRY
HENKE.

EXPERIENCE OF GEORGE ANDRE.

On the 11th of December, in the year 1846, after a
sea-voyage of eleven weeks, I saw for the first time
this happy and free America; and on the following
day I was permitted to step on shore in a land which
secured to me political and religious liberty, and
which, through the boundless mercy and long-suffer-
ing of God, has become the land of my spiritual birth.
It was not a desire to gain riches that induced me, a
youth of only sixteen years, to come to this country ;
but the love of liberty and affection for my parents
and friends, from whom I could not bear to be sepa-
rated.

The place of our landing was New Orleans, where
we did not remain long, as we soon set out for Louis-
ville, the place of our destination. Here, for some
time, I visited the Lutheran Church, whose preacher
had himself neither true godliness nor took the least
pains to preach it to others in his Church. He was
in the habit of reading his sermons, of which, as he
told me, he had a stock on hand that would last him two
years, and when that time was out he would commence
at the first again. When he made his pastoral visits
he would by no means refuse a dram of Avhisky, and

310 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

would take something better if he could get it. Such
a course of conduct I could not approve of; and seek-
ing further for a spiritual guide, I was drawn into
associations which led me into the fearful vortex of
infidelity.

In the commencement of my infidel life I was glad
to have made the discovery that there were such
plausible grounds against the Bible. I began in good
earnest and with great zeal to fortify myself in my
new principles, in order to counteract the numerous
doubts and fears that arose within me in reference
to the truths of my new discovery. The satisfaction
I derived from my false theories was of short duration.
I was compelled to weigh one of my principles after
another in the scale of reason; and I thank God
that I was not so far blinded by prejudice that I could
not give an unbiased judgment, as far, at least, as
an unconverted man can judge correctly in these
matters. I now could not mingle in the Bacchanalian
revels of the free-thinkers, not because I was too
good, but too proud to lead an immoral life. My poor
soul was like a helpless ship, among the reefs of a
rock-bound coast. At times the wind appeared to
drive it to the embraces of my blessed Savior, then
again the storm threatened to drive it upon the rocks
of destruction. In this way my mind was agitated
by day and my repose was disturbed by night. I
wanted to pray, but how was a poor sinner to pray ?
Hear it : " If there be a God, then may he lead me in
the right way ! Amen." This was about all I could
say. Yet, blessed be his name ! there is a God and he
did lead me in the right way.

About this time, when my mind was so much

GEORGE ANDRE. 311

agitated on the subject of religion, there was in the
phice where I lived a young man, a clerk in a store,
who sought my acquaintance and society. This he
could the more easily gain, as I was at the same time
also seeking a friend with whom to associate. Before
long, we could be seen at the close of the day's labor
in our pleasure Avalks; and my new friend in a short
time began to recommend to me true religion, the
possession of which had made him happy. One
evening he took me to visit one of his friends, a
pious old gentleman. The conversation was turned
upon the Bible, and religion, yet with all my doubts
and skeptical views in reference to religion, I had too
much respect to tell the old gray-headed man that
I did not believe in the Bible. I thought I could
easily manage him ; but he soon nailed me fast, strik-
ing blow after blow with his propositions which were
so simple and powerful. He proved the Bible true
by the Bible itself, and deeply impressed the truth
into my mind that it was the word of God. This
good old man, by the name of Vetter, has pointed
many a wayward wanderer to his Father's house.

Previous to this I had already occasionally visited
the Methodist Church, but then I went to mock ; now
I went to pray. My family did every thing in their
power to keep me away from the meetings, yet all in
vain, for I went again and again seeking the Lord,
if he would receive and take home a prodigal son.
It appeared at first as though he would not. I visited
all the prayer meetings and was often at the altar
of prayer, and could indeed say with the Psalmist,
" My bones waxed old through my roaring all the day
long." From my appearance I seemed to become ten

312 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

years older in a few weeks. Finally, after the most
fearful night, which I passed with anxious struggles,
when I arose to perform my morning devotions, the
blessed Savior spoke peace to my desponding heart.
As the natural sun threw its first beams into my room
the Sun of righteousness arose upon my poor heart.
I shouted, I praised God, I leaped for joy. All
things had become new within and without; I under-
stood the Psalmist when he spoke of the trees clapping
their hands, and the mountains skipping like lambs.
My store was too small for me : I thought I must
declare to the world the salvation which is in Christ.
This was the 17th of December, 1847. On the 3d
of January, 1848, I joined the Methodist Church,
through the members of which I had come to a
knowledge of the truth.

I soon had strong impressions to go out as a mis-
sionary to preach the Gospel to my countrymen, to
which brothers Kisling and Danker encouraged me.
But business relations made it impossible for me to
devote myself to this work. From Louisville I moved
to Burlington, Iowa, where for a number of years I
endeavored to make myself useful as a local preacher;
till, finally compelled by the reproofs of my con-
science, I vowed to God to follow the first opening
of the way to devote myself wholly to the service
of his Church.

I did not have to wait long. The way was soon
opened, and notwithstanding I had a lucrative busi-
ness, I followed the directions of Pravidence and the
call of the Church; and on the 24th of October, I,
with the faithful companion of my life, left home and
friends, beloved parents, and a lovely society, with

FREDERIC KOPP. 313

whom we had been bound in the bond of Christian
fellowship, and started for Bloomington, Illinois, as
an itinerant preacher of the Methodist Church. Here
I labored two years, and have reason to thank God
my labor was not in vain. The Lord owned his word,
and raised up a goodly number of spiritual children.
As I am concluding this brief sketch, I thank my
merciful heavenly Father for all his providence, grace,
and mercy; and with joy I raise mine Ebenezer,
"Hitherto the Lord had helped me."

EXPERIENCE OF FREDERIC KOPP.

Mergelstetten, at the foot of the Alps in the
Swabian land, is the place where I first saw the light
of life, on the 16th of September, 1827. My parents
were members of the Lutheran Church, and believed
in religion as it had been handed down to them from
their fathers, but without having any experience of
a change of heart. They regularly read their morn-
ing and evening prayers, and went twice to Church
every Sabbath, and without exception made their
children go with them. It is no uncommon thing in
my native country for families to get into quarrels,
and curse and swear at each other before and after
reading their morning and evening prayers.

In such a condition I lived with my parents and
six children till the year 1846. Three years before
this some young men from our neighborhood went
to America, and wrote back beautiful and interesting
letters, about the advantages and glory of the New
World, the independence and happiness of its in-
habitants, and the good fortune of all who went there.
These letters excited many, and especially my two

27

314 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

older sisters and myself, to go to America, and -we
begged and entreated our parents night and day to
emigrate to the land of freedom. I know not what
so especially excited me to go. Of liberty I then
had no proper conception; riches I did not want;
but there was an inexpressible longing desire that
drew me to America. I can now see that a gracious
Providence led us out, not only to give us political,
but also spiritual liberty, and to save us from eternal
death.

On the 24th of August, 1846, our ship landed at
the harbor in New York ; and how delighted we were,
on approaching the city, to see the beautiful country,
with its green hills and elegant shrubbery, its rural
cottages and well-cultivated gardens ! The city did
not interest us much, as we were common country
folks, and could scarcely find our way through the
bustle and confusion. Our aim was to procure a piece
of land where we might apply our energies, and live
in our own cottage, and eat the products of our own
labors, free from anxious care. We accordingly set-
tled in the then new and flourishing territory of Wis-
consin. Here we went to work and felled the tall
trees, as fast as possible, to clear our ground ; and on
the following harvest we had raised enough to supply
our wants. We lived two years without seeing a
preacher, or any one who cared for our souls. There
was no converted person in the neighborhood, and we
generally spent Sunday in hunting and sporting ; but
in this I did not find much pleasure, and there was no
day so long to me as the Sabbath.

In the fall of 1848 we heard, to our great joy, that
a German preacher was to conduct religious services

FREDEEIC KOPP. 315

In the house of my brother-in-law. The whole neigh-
borhood, old and young, assembled on the occasion,
so that the house could not contain them all. The
man gave us an excellent sermon, and I remarked to
a neighbor of ours that he preached differently, and
more earnestly than our ministers in Germany. " 0,"
said he, " you only think so because we have not heard
preaching for so long a time." The next appoint-
ment was made for that day three weeks ; at which
time the preacher took for his text these words, " One
thing is needful;" and it appeared to me that I had
never before heard what was needful for me. A cer-
tain restlessness was excited within me, and I now
saw, for the first time in my life, that religion did not
consist alone in outward ceremonies, but must dwell
in the heart. Up to this time we did not know what
kind of preacher this was ; but as my sister, who was
living in Milwaukie, and who had there been awakened
and converted under Methodist preaching, in a visit
to us, told us a great many things about the Method-
ists, we were quite certain that this man must be a
Methodist preacher, and so he proved.

Through the love and kindness of our English
brethren of the Methodist Church there was a mis-
sionary sent to us lost sheep, who was the first to
blow the Gospel trumpet in those regions ; and many
of us, too, for the first time in our lives, heard the
Gospel from a man who had experienced in his own
heart that the Gospel is the power of God unto sal-
vation to all them that believe. Soon after this the
sacrament of the Lord's supper was administered, and
the presiding elder, brother Eisenmeier, was present.
He preached with power, and produced more deep

316 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

impressions upon my mind than any man had ever
done. My conscience was waked up, and many others
were convinced that they must be converted. I now
had a great desire for mercy and pardon, but was ig-
norant of the way, and thought I could only expect
acceptance with God when I had made myself better.
In this condition I lived nearly a whole year ; some-
times I thought I was converted, and then my sins
would rise again, and my courage failed, and I also
yet clung to the world. On this account I did not
obtain the full rest of the soul. But with all this
I daily searched the Scriptures and other good books,
read a great deal, and also commenced praying in the
family, as my father was now dead, and I was the
oldest of the children.

In the year 1849 I felt in my heart that an entire
surrender was demanded of me, and that it was es-
pecially my duty to join the Church, which up to
this time I had neglected to do. On the 26th of
December my mother and myself, with two more of
our family, joined the Church, and this was a great
blessing to me. We had already established a Sab-
bath school, in which I took an active part, and in-
structed the larger children. I was soon appointed
class-leader, and with what little grace I had I im-
proved my talent, so that the Lord constantly added
a little more, and in the fall of the next year it fell
to my lot to enter upon my first field of labor as a
missionary to the Germans. Within me I felt a great
love for my countrymen ; and after I was licensed to
exhort, I often went on foot, from seven to twelve
miles and back the same day, in order to encourage
my countrymen to seek the Lord ; but to go out as

FREDERIC KOPP. 317

preacher, with my limited knowledge and experience,
I thought was too much for me. I asked for time to
prepare myself better for the work, but the word was,
" Say not I am too young, but go whither thou art
sent," The men for the work were scarce, and the
field was large.

Owing to my youth and inexperience in the work,
I might have taken some wrong steps that would have
resulted in evil to myself and been injurious to -the
cause ; and, from my own experience, I was fully con-
vinced of the importance of sending young men with
older and more experienced ones to counsel and in-
struct them in the duties and work of the ministry.
Yet with all my youth and inexperience in the work,
the Lord blessed us, and a number of souls were con-
verted. The next year I was sent as missionary to
Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. Since that time I have been
laboring in different fields, and I am now in Burling-
ton, Iowa. In this city, as well as in all my other
fields of labor, I have found many Germans, a large
number of whom were prejudiced against us, because
the Roman Catholics, as well as Lutherans, believe
that the Churches to which they belong are the only
true Churches, and to join any other would be falling
from the true faith. But the Gospel which we preach
soon teaches them a better way, and many who, in
their blindness, like Saul, had persecuted the people
of God, are converted, and become zealous defenders
of his cause. Especially can we do much among the
children by our Sunday schools, and to this object
our excellent Sunday school books contribute much.

When I look back upon my past ministry, and
think of the number of Sunday schools I have been

318 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

instrumental in forming, I am led to exclaim, " Bless
the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits,"
I heartily thank God that I am a citizen of the freest
and happiest land on the earth, and that he has made
me free from the bondage of sin, the power of the
devil, and the fear of death. I further thank him
that I am a member of the Methodist Church, ^Yhich
taketh care of her youth as a mother careth for her
children, and so richly supplies them with the sincere
milk of the word, and seeks to raise them up to the
fullness of the stature of men in Christ Jesus. Es-
pecially do I thank God that he has counted me
worthy to declare the riches of his grace to sinners
far and near. Notwithstanding some complain of the
hardships of the itinerant preacher's life, I do not,
and shall not, complain ; and although we have some-
times hard fare and a small support, yet when the
treasures of the rich shall pass away, and this world
shall be consumed by the fires of the judgment-day,
then the Judge shall say to those who have labored
in his vineyard, " Behold, I come quickly, and my
reward is with me." May the Lord God of all grace
keep me, and all his followers, faithful to the end, and
establish his kingdom in all lands !

EXPERIENCE OF HENRY HENKE.

I was born of Lutheran parents, and brought up
in the doctrines of their Church, and was, accord-
ing to custom, by confirmation at a suitable age,
identified with the Church. Though in iny early
days I had a longing desire for spiritual food, yet
I was without power, and had no one to direct me
where I could find peace to my soul.

*" HENRY HENKE. 319

Since the Lord gave the light of his grace to shine
into my heart, I have often thought back upon my
past life, but I can not recollect that I was ever in-
structed in the doctrine of repentance toward God
and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ for the pardon
of sins. I was early convinced that the restraining
grace of God often worked in my heart, directing and
protecting me when the enemy of my soul sought to
destroy me. As I advanced in years I increased in
wickedness ; yet the merciful Savior did not withdraw
his eye of compassion from me.

In my youthful days I was passionately fond of
playing and dancing, and often returned to my home
at the dawn of the morning ; but this was frequently
not so tormenting to my conscience as when I re-
turned home at midnight ; for when I laid me down
to sleep, in the darkness of the night, my conscience
would wake up and reproach me for my folly. Under
its reproofs I often wept, and promised to forsake my
follies, but I lacked the power to do so, and had not
been instructed to turn to the Savior, who alone could
help me. Thus I would keep my promise to do bet-
ter, only till the next temptation to do evil ; and this
was never later than the following Sabbath.

Under these circumstances two important objects
were impressed upon my mind ; either to devote my-
self to the military service, or to go to America. In
this unsettled state I spent several years, till finally I
was received into the military service. I soon be-
came dissatisfied with my situation, and then thoughts
of emigrating to America were again so strongly im-
pressed upon my mind that I spared neither pains
nor money to gain my release from military service.

320 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

When, on the 25th of June, 1836, I succeeded in ob-
taining it, I immediately made my arrangements to go ;
and on the 26th of the same month I left my parental
home to come to America. In the good providence
of God I arrived at Wheeling, Virginia, on the 8th of
October in the same year. Here I lived partly con-
tented, and had not the opportunities to follow my in-
clination to sin.

In 1838 the Lord led brother Swahlen to Wheel-
ing, and began to manifest his power in the awakening
and conversion of a number of souls, among whom
Avere some of my friends. They labored with me,
but to all outward appearance without effect. They
could not induce me to attend their meetings, though
I finally commenced praying in secret to God, asking
him, if I was right not to allow others to deceive me,
but if I was wrong to lead me to the right way. On
Sunday, the 24th of February, 1839, 1 subscribed my-
self anew to the Lutheran Church. Through the
week my brother-in-law sought to persuade me to go to
his church, which I however refused to do. On Sun-
day morning his wife came to invite me, but I again
refused ; my dear wife then urged me to go to the
Methodist meeting, and said Ave could go this once,
and on the next Sunday we could attend the Lutheran
church again. I at length consented to go. When I
came to the church I kneeled down and prayed that
God should lead me in the right way. I found noth-
ing to object to and nothing to convince me that I was
Avrong. In the afternoon I Avent to class, and in the
evening to preaching again without much effect upon
my mind. At the close of the sermon brother Swah-
len gave an invitation for penitents to come to the

HENRY HENKE. 321

altar of prayer, and under this invitation the Spirit of
God powerfully affected my heart. Through the grace
of God I accepted the invitation, and kneeled at the
altar to call on the name of the Lord. My prayer
was heard, a new song was put into my mouth, even
praise to God; and I was now not ashamed to be
called a Methodist. On the same evening, March 3,
1889, I joined the Church. The following Monday,
as one of the leading members of the Lutheran
Church went out to collect for their preacher, I paid
him my subscription, and requested that my name be
taken from their Church-book.

I then felt a deep interest for the cause of God,
and the first year of my membership I became class-
leader, steward, and trustee. In the third year it was
suggested to me by my preacher, Rev. C. C. Best,
that I might be useful if I would devote myself to the
service of the Church and the preaching of the Gospel.
I replied that I could not accept this sacred ofEce.
After this strange thoughts passed through my mind.
I became restless, and committed the matter in prayer
to God, thinking that if he wanted me in his vine-
yard he would open the way for me to go into the
work. Thus several years passed away, but my de-
sire to labor for God increased. I was licensed to
exhort and soon afterward to preach; and, in a short
time, my mind became so strangely impressed with
my duty to go out and labor for souls, that I could
scarcely restrain myself. When I mentioned the mat-
ter to my wife she made objections to my going,
and asked me whether I would ruin my family, and
said that if I went she would not go with me. I was
tempted to give up the idea of going, but my con-

322 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

science was not quieted long, and I had such inward
conflicts that I felt it was a solemn mockerj for me to
pray the Lord to revive his work, and at the same
time to be unwilling to labor for his cause.

When I resolved to go in spite of all difficulties I
felt joyful ; when I refused again I became gloomy
and sorrowful. When the brethren in the quarterly
conference gave me a recommendation to the annual
conference, I told brother Doering not to rely on me
till they heard from me at conference, and committed
myself to the Lord in prayer. My dear wife, how-
ever, was unmoved till the time came for me to write
to the conference, and then I asked her what I should
write. She answered, weeping, " Write as you please."
I reported my case to brother Doering, and told him
that I would go. I received my appointment for
Malaga, and went with my family to my appointed
field of labor, and commenced in weakness, but with
joy, to labor. My prayer was that the Lord would
grant me much grace to be useful in his vineyard, and
bring many immortal souls to the knowledge of the
truth. I thank God that he has inclined the heart of
my wife to go with me to this work, so that now in-
stead of complaining she prays that the Lord may
make me useful.

Blessed be God and our Savior Jesus Christ, for
his love which I enjoy with mine. May the Lord bring
many precious souls to a knowledge of himself!

JOHN SCHMIDT, 323

CHAPTER XXy.

JOHN SCHMIDT — HENRY KOLBE — GEORGE
BOESHENZ.

EXPERIENCE OF JOHN SCHMIDT,

In the year 1838, as many of my relations and ac-
quaintances had determined to go to America, I too,
although only in my sixteenth year, desired to be-
come an emigrant to the New World. As I was the
only child, there was very little prospect that my pa-
rents would allow me to go alone. They themselves,
especially my father, had not the most distant idea of
emigrating, inasmuch as they had a competence for
their subsistence in their father-land. Yet He who
controls the hearts of men by his gracious providence,
so overruled our affairs that, to my great joy, my pa-
rents rather than see me go alone were willing also to
go to America. Arrangements were made to sell
house, vineyard, land, and all ; and in the spring of
1839 we started on our journey. On the 15th of May,
with many tears and the good wishes of our friends,
we bade farewell to our old home ; and, on the 7th of
September, in the same year, we, for the first time, set
foot on American soil. As it was not our object to
remain in a large city, in a few days after our land-
ing we went country-wards, and settled in one of the
most beautiful villages of Pennsylvania. Scarcely
had we become rested from our long journey when

324 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

my father was taken sick, and in one montli from our
arrival in America he died. Yet God, who knoweth
the heart of the stranger, manifested himself to us as
a friend and a helper in our time of need.

When I left my home I was a member of the Lu-
theran Church, but I was a stranger to experimental
godliness. God, in a wonderful manner, awakened
me while we were on board the ship at sea, to see my
sinful and lost condition, and to show me that I must
be born again. But how or in what manner this was
to be accomplished I did not know. I had no one to
give me instruction, or lead me in the way to the Sa-
vior. I felt sorrowful and cast down, and frequently
sought to conceal my feelings, but in vain ; I finally
came to the delusive thought thj^t I would feel better
if I were to go to sonre oiher part of the country,
or to some other city. Accordingly I bade my mother
farewell, and sel out afoot on ;i^ journey over the
Alleghany Mountains, for Pittsburg ; but a strange
feeling still seemed to urge me on. Restless and dis-
contented I left Pittsburg and came down the Ohio
river to Cincinnati, and from thence I went to Louis-
ville, and still on to St. Louis, then up the Mississippi
till I reached the borders of Minnesota. But even
there I did not find my long-sought rest. Accord-
ingly I descended the river till I came to New Or-
leans, and reached there just at the time when Rev.
P. Schmucker, one of the first German missionaries,
was establishing a German mission in that city. I
was earnestly seeking rest for my heavy-laden soul,
but here too I was disappointed, for I did not seek
in the right way nor turn my attention to the right
object.

JOHN SCHMIDT. 325

Finally, after wandering for a long time in the mazes
of error, and feeling sin's disease preying upon me,
I concluded to go to my mother again, and came up
the Mississippi. On my way from New Orleans to
Louisville I became acquainted with two men, the
one a Jew and the other a Roman Catholic. They
urged me strongly to tarry some days in Louisville,
where they also lived. A gracious providence so
ordered it that I obtained a home in a Christian fam-
ily. There were several other young men boarding
at the same place. Here I saw many things that I
liked very much. A blessing was asked at the table
and prayer was had in the family every morning and
evening. Every member of the family treated me
with the utmost kin<!||3eS8. ^nd the young men man-
ifested a deep interesi-m u^j welfare, so that I felt
myself at once "'quite at Home with them. They took
me Avith them'H^,Achui"ch, and also here I was well
satisfied. The wor^ of CrOd, which I had not heard
for several years io^ thgj-'Crerman language, deeply
penetrated my heart, and I constantly saw more
clearly how and in what way I yas to be delivered
from the burden of my sins; namely, that I must
give up my hope founded on baptism and confirmation
and receive Christ and his merits by faith alone.

It was well for me that I did not know this kind
family were Methodists when I first took up my
residence with them, for already in Pennsylvania I
had been warned against the Methodists, and heard
many things said against them. I was, therefore,
much astonished and somewhat alarmed when I heard
one day that these people were Methodists. Yet I
was convinced that they were good people, let others

326 GERMiN MISSIONARIES.

say of them what they would ; and I knew that by
their kindness to me they sought my welfare, for I
never had been treated so kindly by any from the day
that I had left my home. By their love they gained
me, and on Easter-day, in the year 1842, I cast in
my lot with the despised Methodists, and in the fall
of the same year, at a camp meeting near New
Albany, in Indiana, the Lord permitted me to find
my long-sought treasure, and spoke peace to my
soul. Now the clouds of error and darkness passed
away. The happiness for which I had long been
seeking I now possessed. My mother at first was
deeply grieved on account of the course I had
taken — for she felt distressed that her only child
should fall from the faith of our fathers; but after-
ward, when she came to me, she took the same course,
became a Methodist, and lived a faithful member of
the Church during the remai»der of her life. She
died in the triumphs of faith, and has gone to her
reward in heaven.

Soon after my conversien I felt strongly moved
to preach the Gospel, but I felt that the lot of a
Methodist preacher — to be poor and neglected — was
a hard one. I therefore avoided every offer to do
something in the way of talking to the people, and
where I could not avoid being called upon I often
excused myself against my own conscience. Besides
this I believed that if the Lord had called me to
preach he would find ways and means to put me into
the ministry without my putting myself forward, and
that if it must be so that I shall go out and preach
the Gospel I will have this comfort, that I did not
urge myself forward. I changed my residence to

HENRY KOLBE. 327

Burlington, Iowa, at the time when Rev. L. S.
Jacoby was presiding elder on Quincy district, to
which Burlington then belonged, and thought myself
in the most safe condition; but a door was opened for
me into the ministry, which I could not refuse to
enter.

When brother Nast heard that I had gone to Bur-
lington he recommended me to brother Jacoby, who
was the right man to bring me into the work. The
Lord, also, in his good providence, so changed my
affairs in other respects that in the fall of 1848, with
a reliance upon the promise of God and his grace, I
started out to preach the Gospel. I have had some
hard and toilsome fields during the past ten years
while I have been laboring in the vineyard of the
Lord ; but hitherto the Lord hath helped me. I thank
him that he has counted me worthy and made me wil-
ling to enter upon his service as a minister of his word.

EXPERIENCE OF HENRY KOLBE.

On the 19th of September, in the year 1851, I
first set my feet on American soil, and soon after
landing, I, with another young man, came to Cincin-
nati, Ohio, where I had some relatives living. After
a long search I found them, and was very much sur-
prised and disappointed when I learned that both
my uncles were members of the German Methodist
Church. I was strongly inclined to infidelity, and in
my heart an enemy to the religion of Jesus Christ. I
had already denounced the course which the Methodist
Episcopal Church had taken in sending her mission-
aries to Germany, and therefore despised and pitied
my relatives, who, as I thought, had been misled by

328 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

them, and could hardly make up my mind to associ-
ate -with them. But as I considered myself firmly
grounded in my unbelief, I liacf no fears of being
shaken in my principles or misled by the Methodists.
Soon after my arrival here a friend of mine invited
me one Sunday to go with him to Wesley Chapel.
After some little objections I concluded to go. The
earnestness of the preacher, the solemn stillness of
the large congregation, interrupted occasionally by a
hearty amen, the melodious singing, pouring out from
hearts that seemed to feel what they sung, all this —
although I did not understand a word of it — im-
pressed me favorably. Early on the following Sun-
day my friend came to me again, and requested me
to take a walk with him. I thought he intended to
take me out to show me the curiosities of the city.
On our walk he stopped in front of the Buckeye-
Street German Methodist church, and told me he
was going in to attend the meeting, and asked me if
I would not come in too. I was not sure that I could
find the way back to my boarding-house, as I was a
stranger in the city; and accordingly, though with
some reluctance, I went into the church with him.
This was the first time I had ever been in a German
Methodist church. It was on the first Sabbath in
November, in the year 1851. Instead of being dis-
satisfied I was interested in the religious exercises,
and from that time forward visited the church twice
every Sunday, and gradually felt a change going on
within me. I began to entertain serious doubts
about the truth of my infidel principles, and lost my
relish for the sinful amusements to which I had been
attached.

HENKY KOLBE. 829

I began to searcli the Scriptures with diligence and
care, and prayed to God to lead me in the right way.
The more I searched, the more my doubts increased.
I now had no rest, day nor night, and the thoughts of
meeting a holy and a righteous God, with all my sins
upon me, and of being eternally separated from the
object of all good — all this caused me to fear and
tremble.

In this condition I visited a preacher of the Ger-
man Reformed Church, and obtained his permission
to attend the sacrament of the Lord's supper, but
neither during preaching nor at the communion table
did I find rest to my soul.

More depressed than ever I went on Christmas
night to the German Methodist church on Race-street.
The word preached sank deeply into my heart; I
thought these are the people of God ; my love toward
them increased, and the same evening I joined the
Church. I longed for the evidence that Christ Avas
formed in my heart the hope of glory, and I was deter-
mined not to give up seeking till I had the witness
that my name was written in the book of life.

I went to the altar of prayer every time an invita-
tion was given ; and about the middle of January,
1852, it pleased God to draw me out of the horrible
pit and to set my feet on the Rock of Ages. It is
out of my power to describe the happiness that I en-
joyed then. I had such a clear witness of my con-
version that I have never doubted the reality of it.

Shortly after, I left Cincinnati and moved to St.

Mary's, Ohio, where I lived nine months. I here felt

quite lonely, as there was no German society of the

Methodist Church here ; but I found a great many of

28

330 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

my old companions in unbelief. I pitied them, and
wished that I could be a help to them, and show them
how glorious is the way of salvation. In order to do
something for their eternal welfare, I went from house
to house, distributing tracts. I also established a
Sunday school, and engaged as many of my country-
men in it as I could.

Rev. Ralph Wilcox, who was at that time pastor of
the Methodist congregation, encouraged me to preach
to the Germans, which I did, but only for a short time.
Rev. Dr. Nast also pointed out my duty to me ; but I
never thought that I could be useful as a laborer in
the Lord's vineyard. In October, 1852, I moved to
Defiance, Ohio. The first time I met Rev. P. B.
Backer, preacher in charge, he told me that I must
go to the conference with him the next fall. This was
quite unexpected to me, because to avoid preaching
was just the reason that I left St. Mary's, and now
there seemed to be no escape. I was often requested
to accept license as exhorter, but I would in nowise
consent to it. But God has ways and means to direct
our steps. Once, when I was riding on horseback,
the horse ran away with me, while my right foot stuck
fast in the stirrup. Amid the most intense pains I
promised God to obey him if he would keep me from
becoming a cripple. I put several questions to my-
self, as. Is it perhaps pride, or a desire for a comfort-
able life and honor ? My answer was that the Meth-
odist preachers had the least cause for being proud,
and that they enjoyed little rest and comfort, and that
they could easily bear their honor. But what troubled
me the most were the words of the Lord to Ezekiel,
chapter iii, 17, 18. It was terrible to me that the

GEORGE BOESllENZ. 331

blood of each soul that might bo lost on my account
should be required of me. I resolved now to try it
one year, and accepted license as an exhorter, and
was astonished to find that my mind was greatly re-
lieved of a heavy burden, and peace and happiness
took possession of my soul.

In 1853 the quarterly conference of Defiance mis-
sion. North Indiana district, gave me license to preach,
and recommended me to the South-Eastern Indiana
conference. At the close of the first year I told my
presiding elder that, according to my promise, I had
tried now one year, and should like to be dismissed,
but he would not consent to it.

After preaching for five years in Indiana, the state
of my health required a change of country, and I
consequently selected Minnesota. I am praying to
God continually that he may give me grace and
strength to discharge my duties faithfully, that, after
preaching to others, I myself may not become a
castaway.

EXPERIENCE OF GEORGE BOESHENZ.

I was born and brought up in the evangelical Lu-
theran Church, baptized when an infant, and confirmed
at fourteen years of age. I attended to the ceremo-
nies of religion, and believed myself a good Christian ;
though after we had gone to meeting on Sabbath fore-
noon and heard a sermon, in the afternoon we went
to drinking-houses, to balls, and places of amusement,
and knew nothing of a change of heart or the new
birth.

In the year 1836, at the age of eighteen, I emi-
irrated to America. On the 1st of June I landed in

332 GERMAN MISSIONAEIES.

New York, but soon left for the west, and settled in
St. Louis. At the age of twentj-three I was married,
and after this went more regularly to church, and put
more restraints upon myself, refraining from many of
the amusements in which I had previously indulged.
I went every Sabbath to the evangelical Lutheran
church, and became acquainted with some converted
people, and was gradually convinced of the import-
ance and necessity of conversion.

Our minister preached repentance, and brought
many so far that they were awakened and under
deep conviction ; but here he stopped. When some
of his members came to him, under awakening, and
told him they felt their sins as a heavy load, and
wished^to get counsel and advice, he would tell them
to go out, take exercise, and divert the mind from
such serious reflections, and not to think too deeply
on the subject of religion. Thus he advised, instead
of pointing them to the Savior, and explaining to
them the nature of that true faith by which the sinner
receives Christ, and obtains pardon through his merits.

About this time brother Jacoby came to St. Louis
as missionary, and began to preach. This was in the
year 1841. Now, one after another of our people
who had been partially awakened went to hear him,
and before I was aware of it many of them had
joined the Methodist Church. Neither myself nor
our preacher liked it, and though I knew that I must
be converted, if I would be saved, I did not wish to
become a Methodist. We also began to hold prayer
meetings in our church ; but as a great part of our
congregation were not disposed to seek for salvation,
they were not willing to have prayer meetings held in

aEORGE BOESHENZ. 333

ilie church, and said if any wished to pray they
might pray at home. They woukl not, as they said,
imitate the Methodists. I plainly saw that there was
a poor prospect for conversion where so much indiffer-
ence was manifested ; and from time to time I went
to the Methodist church. The word which I heard
there took effect on my heart, tears rolled from my
eyes, and a voice whispered within me, as the preacher
described the character of the sinner, " Thou art the
man." The customs of the Methodist Church inter-
ested me, and especially did I like the practice of
calling penitents to the altar of prayer. My con-
science told me that this was the place for me, but the
name of Methodist I could not endure. Still I went
more to the Methodist meetings than to the Lutheran.
Yet how remarkable a gracious Providence over-
rules all things. One day my wife came to me in my
shop, and said to me, " See what a beautiful book I
have brought from one of our neighbors." I told her
to take it to the house and I would examine it in
the evening. I read in this book till midnight. It
invited the sinner to Christ, and described the salva-
tion offered by him to the sinner, and taught me that
only such as were converted could finally be saved.
In the same week I received a letter from two of my
sisters living in the state of Ohio, who told me that
the Lord had converted their souls, and how happy
and blessed a thing it is to be a true Christian. They
also urged me to become a true Christian. My heart
was so affected that I could scarcely read the letter
through. This was another arrow to my heart. They
told me they had joined the Methodist Church, and
I said to myself, If they have become Methodists,

334 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

why may not I? My mind was at once made up, and
on the next Sabbath I went to the church with the
determination to join.

It was the time of quarterly meeting, and as the
preacher was reading the consecration prayer in the
administi-ation of the sacrament of the Lord's supper,
I became so affected that I wept and sobbed, and cried
aloud: "God be merciful to me a sinner." But I did
not then obtain an evidence of my pardon. How-
ever, I joined the Church. This was on the 9th of
March, 1845.

I sought the Savior for five months, neglected no
opportunity to obtain an interest in the prayers of
the Church, went to all the meetings night and day,
and sometimes lay for hours upon my knees calling
upon God for mercy. My resolution was to obtain
pardon and peace, let it cost what it might, and some-
times I lay for hours on the ground all alone in the
stillness of the night, pleading and making my sup-
plication before a throne of grace. As I had thus
been seeking four months I became almost discouraged,
because I did not obtain the pardon of my sins. I
scarcely knew what I should do.

In the mean time the St. Louis German camp meet-
ing approached. I at first thought I would not go, as
I had heard so many things against camp meetings.
I was willing to be a Methodist; but to camp meeting
I thought that I could not go. Yet when the time
arrived I thought it best not to listen to what others
said against them, but to go and see for myself. On
Sabbath morning I w^ent quite early, and when I
arrived at the camp-ground the impression was made
on my mind that this is to be the place of my con-

GEORGE BOESHENZ. 335

version. I was soon so affected that I could neither
eat nor drink, but the happy hour for my deliverance
at last came; on Sabbath evening, August 17, 1845,
between nine and ten o'clock I obtained peace with
God. I was so filled with joy that I scarcely knew
whether I was in the body or out of the body.

Six months after this I was appointed class-leader;
which oflSce I did not wish to take, but a good sister
gave me an earnest exhortation on this subject, and
advised me to do the best I could. I led the class
from that time, and in communing together we had
many glorious and happy hours.

In a year after my conversion I felt that I must
do something more for the cause of God, but I knew
not what. I knew that I could not preach ; my work-
shop was almost too small for me, and I felt like
going out into the world; but then the question
would come again, What shall I do? I thought I
might be useful as a colporteur to sell books, visit
the people at their houses, talk to them and pray
with them, and tell them they must be converted.
Sometimes I prayed that the Lord might deliver me
from these impressions. This struggle went on in
my mind during the summer of 1847, and in the fall
about conference time I received license to exhort
under the administration of brother Kuhl. Three
months afterward I received license to preach, and
was soon sent out on a mission where the preacher
had died. When asked whether I was willing to go
I requested two weeks' time to think over the matter,
during which I laid it before the Lord in earnest
prayer, asking him that if it were not his will that
I should go to hedge up my way.

336 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

I was at last as fully convinced of my call to
preach the Gospel as I had been that I was converted.
My labors have not been in vain in the Lord. I have
seen some glorious revivals, and hundreds of souls
brought to Christ. I have now been eleven years iu
the itinerant work, and am still willing to labor in the
cause of God.

ERHARDT WUNDERLICH. 337

CHAPTER XXVI.

ERHARDT W UN D E R L I C H — C H ARL ES A. MIL-
ITZER.

EXPERIENCE OF ERHARDT WUNDERLICH.

In a small romantic village in Saxe-Weimar on the
2d of February, 1830, I first saw the light of this
world. My parents, as well as nearly all the inhabit-
ants of our small duchy, belonged to the Protestant
Church, and by baptism in infancy, and confirmation
at fourteen years of age, I was received into the
same Church. In early life I had a great inclination
to learn, and our preacher often requested my father
to send me to a high-school. Though he was able^
he could not be induced to do so till after my con-
firmation, when he already felt symptoms of his ap-
proaching dissolution. Soon after my departure from
home he died.

At the Gymnasium or College every thing seemed
strange to me. I felt lonely; yet this resulted in
good to me, for it induced me to pray. I shed many
a tear, and made many a vow, and had I then been
instructed in the right way I might have been con-
verted. But neither the pupils nor our teachers knew
any thing of God's grace. The leaven of rationalism
had spread through almost every high-school in Ger-
many. The morality of the heathen philosophers
was, if not exalted above the Bible, put on the same
level with it, and frequently the word of God was

29

338 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

made the subject of derision or mockery. But won-
derful are the ways of the Lord. I was not long
enough here for the good seed sown in my heart by
a praying mother to be entirely eradicated, I had
entertained thoughts of becoming a preacher, and
was pursuing my studies with this intention, but was
compelled to abandon the project on account of my
health. For after I had been at the school a few
years I became sick, and physicians advised me to
engage in some active outdoor employment. I then
chose an agricultural calling, but as I could not find
a good situation, in the fall of 1849 I came to Amer-
ica. This was a source of great grief to my aged
mother, as she believed that by going from under her
care I would finally sink into infidelity and be lost.
Although at that time she knew nothing of evangel-
ical repentance and conversion, yet she feared God
and prayed earnestly, and I am certain that her pray-
ers, like those of Cornelius, were heard. I came to
this country careless and thoughtless, and would
doubtless have been carried away by the stream of
destruction, if it had not been for her prayers and
admonitions.

I had, indeed, left my native land with the de-
termination to become a better man; and principally
on this account I came to America, because I had
frequently heard that there was more religion here
than in Germany. But scarcely had I arrived here
before all these things were forgotten ; and, when God
through his good providence brought me among his
people in Dayton, Ohio, I was so far gone astray as
to oppose religion and persecute those who professed
it. Yet it was not long till I was convinced of the

ERHARDT WUNDERLICH. 339

error of my ways. Now, although I had become will-
ing to repent of my sins, I was not willing to become
a Methodist. The first time that I went to the altar
for the prayers of the Church, after we had prayed
for some time, several that had kneeled by my side
arose and gave the preacher, brother Ahrens, their
hands. But as no public invitation had been given
that I had heard, I did not know what this meant, and
supposed it to be an expression of their good wishes
for the preacher. As I desired also to express my
kind feeling for him, I also arose and gave him my
hand. He asked me my name, which I told him with-
out hesitation. But how was I surprised when I came
home and my uncle told me that by that act I had
joined the Methodist Church! At first I felt vexed
about it ; but I have since often looked at that blunder
with a thankful heart, for I might otherwise have gone
away and remained in an unconverted state.

As I now had the name of Methodist, I at once
determined to seek till I found what they professed to
enjoy. I sought earnestly, and after two weeks I
found, on the 24th of December, 1849, at the altar of
prayer, the pardon of my sins in the blood of Christ.
As much as I had previously despised the people of
God, so much the more I loved them now; and as
much as I had felt lonely in this country, so much the
more I felt myself at home, especially among God's
people. I wrote to my mother and told her what the
Lord had done for my soul, and that I was now re-
solved to remain in America, and wished that my
friends would all come here too. Yet the ways of
the Lord were not according to my plan. My mother
had not the most distant idea of coming to America;

340 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

Lut, on the contrary, held me to the promise which I
made when I left her to visit her again. She told me
most positively that if I ever expected to get any
thing of my father's estate I must come for it. So I
found myself under the necessity to go ; and, with a
timid and fearful heart, I commenced my journey in
the following July. On the first of September, 1850,
I arrived at home.

As I knew of no converted person wdth whom I
could hold communion, I thought to return as soon as
possible. But scarcely w^as it reported that I had re-
turned before several of my old acquaintances called
to see me. They had been brought to reflection by
my letters from America, and had come to inquire
after this new way. I then began to witness for
Jesus, and to testify of that which he had done for
my soul, telling them what he would do also for them,
and exhorted them and prayed with them. God, who
is strength in weakness, blessed his word, and soon
several souls were converted to God and praised him
with new tongues. This, of course, excited attention,
for never had any thing like it been seen or heard of
in this region. The people came out in great num-
bers to hear me, and I was desired to go to other
places ; and soon, without my knowledge or aim, I had
a large mission. I was called upon to preach every
evening, and could not attend to all the appointments,
nor could the crowds that came in from every side be
accommodated in private houses.

Of course the enemy was not pleased with this, nor
content to look on in silence. The struggle soon
came ; the rabble rose against me, and in many
places urged on by freeholders and preachers, so

ERHARDT WUNDERLICH. 341

that they not only disturbed our meetings, but beat
me and thrust me violently out of their settlements
or villages. The Lord so overruled it that the civil
authorities in the beginning looked on in silence, and
so we were allowed, in many places, for two years to
carry on our meeting without especial persecution.
But as the number of believers increased, and my
brother and some others commenced calling sinners to
repentance, the preachers became dreadfully alarmed.
As the opposition on their part could not avail much
against us, they applied to the government, with nu-
merous petitions, to put a stop to this. At last the
civil authorities yielded to their wishes, and issued a
mandate that I was not to speak to the people in the
name of Jesus. As I believed it was better to obey
God than man so in many places I was fined; in
many places I was taken before the magistrate and
tried, and then directed to depart out of their coasts ;
and in some places I was cast into prison.

On one occasion, where I was unrighteously cast
into prison, for one week, for I had held no meeting
and violated no law, the following interesting conver-
sation occurred among the prisoners. These prison-
ers consisted of three infidels, that had been put in
prison for circulating revolutionary books, and each
of us had his own cell, yet we could speak to each
other through the partitions. I was brought in about
ten o'clock in the evening; and after every thing was
made secure, one of them asked another, "Who in
the world have they brought in now again?" My
neighbor answered, "I believe it is the holy father
from Rome!" "What!" responded the first one,
" holy father here again ! Now do tell me what is yet

342 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

to become of Germany? We were put in because we
did not pray ; and if we get out and go to praying
we will be put back here again, for the holy father is
here because he prayed too much. It is better for us
to go to America, for there we will not be imprisoned
for praying." But these persecutions would not have
stopped me had I been able to do any thing more ; but
the every-where-present police watched me by day and
by night, and completely hedged up my way. By the
advice of my friends, and especially brother Jacoby,
in the fall of 1853 I returned to America. Yet I
thank God that he not only brought me safe back to
America, and crowned my feeble efforts with his
blessing, but that he has rendered his word a savor
of life unto life in my old home. Many of my
brethren and sisters came with and others after me
to our free continent.

Though my brother, who took my place in Ger-
many, has had to labor under many embarrassments,
yet the mission still exists and prospers, and I hope
it will continue to exist in the heart of Germany,
where it Avill be as leaven. When the Lord in his
good time shall open the way and many more shall be
brought under the influence of his Holy Spirit, I
expect to find many a sheaf from this seed sown in
tears, in heaven. Many have already been gathered,
and among them is my dear mother, who was con-
verted a year after my return to Germany, and died
triumphantly three years later. My soul rejoices that
I was made Avorthy to collect these fruits for the heav-
enly garner, and I have often thought that if this
were the only fruit of my labors I should be abund
antly rewarded for all my suffering and toil.

CHARLES A. MILITZER. 343

EXPERIENCE OF CHARLES A. MILITZER.

I was born in the protectorate of Saxony, Ger-
many, in the year 1831. My parents were members
of the Lutheran Church, and consequently I was
brought up in their religious faith. They were anx-
ious, as far as they knew how, to bring me up to the
honor of God. They taught me to pray from a
child, and sought to implant within me principles of
morality; but with all this my heart w^as unchanged,
and I was carried away with its unhallowed lusts.
From outbreaking sins the Lord restrained me; but
dancing, card-playing, and the pleasures of the beer-
house were my favorite amusements. I often re-
ceived admonitions from my father to leave off these
things, but my youthful indifference gave them to
the wind, especially as I saw that our preachers
themselves took part in these things.

I was in early youth deprived of my mother, and
in my eighteenth year my father died also. I now
stood almost alone ; and, as a heedless youth, was
carried along by the stream of worldly pleasure.
Often the preventing grace of God wrought mightily
in my heart, especially when 1 thought on the ad-
monitions of my father. At these times 1 often made
good resolutions, and sometimes prayed in secret, and
would gladly have become a new man ; but, alas ! I
loved the ways of sin. I often promised to forsake
my sins, and struggled mightily against them, but I
could not gain the victory. The enemy of my soul
came to me with the profane suggestion, "You can
not help it, God has made you so." But at last God
in his great mercy sent me help out of Zion.

344 GEE MAN MISSIONARIES.

Brother E. Wunderlich came to Germany and
preached Jesus the crucified. I had much to say
against Methodism, on account of which at first I
did not attend the meeting. The chief objection
which I had was that the Methodists were too strict,
and that no one could keep their rules. Curiosity,
however, induced me to go and hear what the Meth-
odist preacher had to say; and, as the sermon was
mostly addressed to believers, my prejudices Avere
rather increased. Yet God looked in mercy on me,
a lost sheep from the fold ; for at the close of the
meeting, while they sung, it pleased the Lord through
two lines of the hymn to penetrate my heart with the
arrow of conviction. These were the lines :

"Despairing with the ungodly band.
Midst flaming worlds shall sinners stand."

The words followed me night and day, and I became
alarmed about the condition of my poor soul. Now I
began to attend Church regularly, not only the preach-
ing, but also the prayer meeting. I was more and
more convinced of my lost condition, and God granted
to me according to his great mercy repentance unto
life. Perhaps six weeks passed away before God
manifested himself to my soul. It was on the 24th
of June, 1852, when the blessed Savior showed me
that his blood had power on earth to pardon sins.
0, Avhat peace I found in my soul! I felt that old
things had passed away and all things were becomo
new.

The joy which I had in the great Author of my
salvation was inexpressibly great; and as the Meth-
odist Church under God was the means of my con-

CHARLES A. MILITZER. 345

version, I united with it. When I had taken this
step I tried to follow the directions of the Savior.
Persecution, mockings, and opposition met me from
all sides, but God gave me grace to continue in my
course. After I was received into full membership
the Church gave me something to do, and I soon
took part in Sunday schools, and the distribution of
tracts, etc. This I did with joy. But here opposi-
tion commenced on the part of the government.
Complaint was laid against me, that in my visits to
the sick I had prayed with them and directed their
minds to the Savior, and for this I was brought be-
fore the civil authorities to answer for my conduct.
But the Lord gave me grace in these trying hours to
cleave by faith unto him, and he never forsook me.
In the course of time I was appointed class-leader,
and afterward licensed to exhort.

The ways of the Lord are wonderful, and so it
was with me. In a remarkable manner did God open
my way to come to America. A man who loved God
and his cause had made a vow to pay the traveling ex-
penses of a young man wishing to come to America
to devote himself to the service of the Church. The
matter was committed to brother Jacoby, the super-
intendent of the German missions. The proposition
was made to me, and I at once laid the matter be-
fore the Lord in earnest prayer to know his will, and
to follow this opening, if it were his will, as a call from
God. In Bremen I was licensed as a local preacher.
On the 19th of October, 1855, I went, in the name
of the Lord, and accompanied by my brother, to the
ship, and started for the New World. This was, as
I confidently believe, a call from the Lord to labor in

346 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

his vineyard. The opportunity to do something for
his cause offered itself even on board the ship, where,
during a sea-voyage of over six weeks, I had the
opportunity to preach eight times to my fellow-
passengers. Though I did it in great weakness it
was evident that the word was accompanied by a
divine power. After I had labored eleven weeks in
America as a local preacher I was taken into the
regular itinerant work. My faith has often been
severely tried, but hitherto the Lord has sustained
me. May he still give me more grace to lay myself
upon his altar as a living sacrifice ! My desire is as
strong as it ever was to serve God all the days of my
life, and to follow the leadings of his providence.

PETER M GELLING. 347

CHAPTER XXVII.

PET Ell M GELLING— CLOISTER LIFE AND

CONVERSIGN.

In the Haardt Mountains, not far from Mannheim,
there is a small village called Neustadt, the place
where I first saw the light of life. There I spent my
youthful days, till I was fourteen years old, when, ac-
cording to the wish of my mother, I went to Speier,
to devote myself to the Roman Catholic priesthood.

Scarcely had I entered a Dominican monastery
when I felt a* strong inclination for missionary in-
telligence. To preach the Gospel to the heathens
gradually grew into a desire in my heart, especially
when I recalled the scenes of my earlier years, when
I, though a child, often with my brothers and sisters,
in the woods, would mount some high moss-grown
rock and hold meeting, and, after the mode and form
of our reverend pastor, would speak of the child
Jesus.

I selected Saint Francis Xavier and Saint Barbara
for my patron saints, on account of their devotion to
the cause of missions. The biography of the former
was seldom out of my hands during my leisure hours,
and from that of the latter I learned to pray to Jesus
m secret. I availed myself of every thing that could
contribute to the study of the ancient and modern
languages, in order, as far as possible, to gain a

348 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

knowledge of them. Before I entered the Gymna-
sium there was but little attention paid to religion
on the part of the teachers. In our devotional hours
we were generally entertained with interesting re-
ligious narratives, after we had mechanically rattled
off our catechism. Fortunately, the fundamental
principles of the Romish faith are put together so
loosely that Jesus found great openings into which
to lay his polished stones.

The first Gymnasium year I can designate as the
most remarkable. I began to think — to philosophize,
if I may so speak. The Latin and Greek authors
waked up my perceptions and the powers of my soul.
The religious teacher, who instructed us in the doc-
trine of the only true Church, was the prebendary
Busch. But if, at the end of the year, I had been
called on to say what are the truths of religion, I
would have been compelled to answer, "Murder,
death, and damnation to Dr. Martin Luther ! poison
and gall for the Protestants," etc. ; together with
some proofs from the Song of Solomon, in favor
of the worship of the Virgin Mary, and some from
reason for purgatory and indulgence. With these
saving religious truths, in the fall vacation, I packed
up my bundle and marched for home. The days of
vacation I spent in Hardenburg, near Durkheim, and
there, for the first time, " Schaidberger's Casket"
came into my hands. Anxious for books as I ever
had been, I opened this, and happened to strike on a
passage where a Protestant preacher was most capi-
tally telling his mind to a Catholic. He led him in
succession to these questions : Who introduced mass,
purgatory, auricular confession, indulgence, and all

PETER MOELLING. 349

such ceremonies ? and then answered them from the
history of the Church. " Is it possible !" exclaimed I.
" Why, Christ taught and ordained all these things."
I marked the principal points, with the Scripture pas-
sages quoted against the worshiping of saints, mass
for the dead, the pardon of sins, etc. The days of va-
cation being over, I packed together all these truths
of the Church of Christ, and again started for the
cloister ; also I did not forget to take a Bible with me.
When I came back the most of my fellow-students
had already returned. The under-regent crossed him-
self in a monstrous manner, just as I entered the
door. I immediately made known my arrival to the
regent, who received me very coldly, and in an un-
friendly manner. On the following day I obtained
an opportunity to read my Bible. The under-regent,
who, with Jesuitical cunning, went up and down
through the museum — for so the dormitories of the
students were called — if possible to ascertain the very
thoughts of the scholars, soon caught me at it : " How
come you to be reading the Bible ?" asked he. " You
do not understand what you are reading," " 0, yes,"
I replied, " I understand, it to a hair ! for Schaid-
berger says that it is stated in the Bible, ' These
things are hid from the wise and the prudent, and are
revealed unto babes.' Further, that our Savior him-
self says, ' Search the Scriptures, for ye think ye have
eternal life in them, and it is they that testify of me ;'
and, finally, Paul says to Timothy, ' All Scripture is
inspired of God, and is profitable for doctrine,' etc.
Look you, Mr. Under-regent, even these passages
will I search after, to see whether they are really
contained in this book."

350 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

He stood still, as if he would work out in his head
the square of the circle ; finally, he said, " Good; you
may read a little in it, but you must by no means be-
lieve that you can understand any part of it ; and at
the first word which does not appear clear to you,
come directly to me and ask for my counsel." I
turned over a few pages further, and accidentally
came to the third chapter of Paul to the Romans :
" And we are justified by his grace, without works,
through the redemption that is through Christ."
This was now really a " hie haeret acpia" an insolu-
ble riddle. Without works, grace, redemption, are
justified, through Christ — five newly-discovered conti-
nents, thought I to myself.

Now it is, then, true that no one can understand
the Bible, or it must be pure nonsense ; but that the
apostle Paul had written nonsense I was not prepared
to admit.

During these reflections my Mr. Under-regent was
again at my side. I disclosed to him my embarrass-
ment, that here it is stated we are, by grace and
without works ; he did not allow me to con-
tinue : there lay my poor harmless Bible in a corner.
" The devil has already begun to work in you ! Will
you then perforce become a heretic ?" I believe if
any one had then struck me he could not have fetched
blood • I was so terrified. I had scarcely recovered
myself when my under-regent and my Bible both dis-
appeared. Now he should have recollected that when
children are forbidden an edged tool, they are the
more eager to obtain it. So it was with me ; I soon
again had a Catholic New Testament in my hands,
translated by Leander Van Ess.

PETER MOELLING. 351

What vie-^s I now entertained of mj Bible no hu-
man soul can have any conception. In my heart
there was a desire to become holy, that I might
finally be happy, and I was especially concerned to
become an efficient and well-informed preacher, that I
might be able to withstand all heretics. The first
passage I opened to was Paul to the Romans, v, 5,
" For the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by
the Holy Ghost, which is given unto us." This pas-
sage I immediately read over, till I had committed it
to memory, and then put the Testament into my writ-
ing-desk.

I now sat down, and instead of studying I recited
the two verses which I had learned directly from the
Bible. The first point I could not get through with ;
but the second was clear to my mind.

The love of God, thought I, shall, and can be, shed
abroad in our hearts, and that through the Holy
Ghost which we have received. Very well : now, in
confirmation, I received the grace of the Holy Spirit,
and thereby also the love of God which is given with
the Holy Spirit.

Finally, God granted me so much grace that I saw
that I had only received the grace of the Holy Spirit,
and not the Spirit itself; consequently, also, there is
no love of God in my heart. If my last piece of
garment had been taken from me I could not have
felt poorer than I now felt. I already believed my-
self to be something, but by an examination of these
two passages I felt that I was absolutely nothing,
whether according to the Protestant or according to
the Catholic Bible. When I went to bed I prayed
for the love of God to be shed abroad in my heart.

352 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

I thought it must be something very desirable to" have
the love of God in the heart. That the regent pos-
sessed this and that the under-regent, Laforette, knew
nothing about it, was clear to my mind, or I would not
be treated in such an unchristian, cold-blooded, and
uncharitable manner.

The poverty in my soul — let me say my spiritual
poverty — constantly drove me to prayer, and the
more I prayed the poorer and the more restless I
became, so that I constantly had great heaviness of
heart. This heaviness was soon observed by all my
fellow-students. I went alone and prayed, or tried to
pray, and I was now only called " the Hardenburg
Philosopher." As it was clear to my mind that the
priest had not the love of God, and could not possi-
bly have the Holy Spirit, and also certainly could not
pardon sins, all of which suspicions corresponded with
my extracts from Schaidberger, I felt a great love
for this book, and as often as I read it found that its
author must have been well acquainted with the Bible.
The crisis in the condition of my soul began to un-
fold itself. Again I opened my Bible and read from
St. John in Revelation xvii, 9: "And here is the
mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven
mountains on which the woman sitteth." In reading
this chapter I was chilled at my heart, and I again
had food for reflection, and laid the Testament by. I
meditated again, "Seven mountains on which the
woman sitteth, with whom the kings of the earth
have committed fornication, and who is drunken with
the blood of the saints." The under-regent just then
passed me; so I looked into my "Julius Caesar," in
which there is a minute description of the building of

PETER MOELLING. 353

Rome on seven hills, and asked him if there was any
■where in the world a city, with the exception of
Rome, that was built on seven hills. " No !" replied
he, " there is none, unless it is Pekin or Nankin, in
China." I had sense enough to know that the evan-
gelist John no more wrote about China than I was
writing about the man in the moon.

"Then," said I, "when St. John in the Revelation
speaks of Babylon he means Rome." Scarcely had
I the words out of my mouth when the under-regent
took me by the ears and led me down stairs into the
so-called "black-room." Slam, thundered the door
to. " No breakfast for fourteen days," was all that I
could understand. When I again came to my under-
standing my first thought was, this trick " the love
of God shed abroad in our heart through the Holy
Ghost" has surely not played. In the mean time
my writing-desk was searched and plundered, all my
papers examined, and all my extracts from Schaid-
berger and my Catholic Testament were found. The
anticipation of what was now to befall me made my
heart faint. " You will either be driven out of the
institution as straight as a line, and then all your con-
versions of the heathen will be at an end, as you will
then not learn to preach, or a hard penance will be
laid upon you." Such reflections crossed my mind.
What was determined in my case by the high council
of the prebendaries and regents was kept concealed
from me. I was relieved from my confinement only
during the class hours. I was anxious to know what
might happen in the next religious meeting. With
an air as if he were about to burn Huss, Pater Busch —

who may now be a bishop somewhere in Germany —

30

354 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

entered the class. We opened the Canisius, so was
our Latin religious book called, and the Pater broke
the silence: " G-ratia estis salvati per fidem, et Jioc 7ion
ex nobis; dei enim donum est!" — "By grace ye are
saved through faith, and that not of yourselves ; for
it is the gift of God." So he has certainly studied
your Schaidberger extracts to-day, thought I, and
awaited in silence what kind of explanation would
follow. Already in the introductory exercises of the
class the lightning began to play over poor Dr. Lu-
ther. "How dreadful is it," continued he, among
other things, "as Dr. Luther says, 'only believe and
thou shalt be saved!' Be a murderer, a thief, a liar,
only believe, and all is done, and you are sure of sal-
vation ; therefore, he also patched the word 'alone'
in the Bible — through faith alone ye are saved. Now
lay your hands in your lap, faith will take you to
heaven as straight as a line," etc. My heart in a
moment began to doubt whether Luther had taught
such doctrine, for he has translated Romans iii, 24:
" And we are without works justified by his grace,
through the redemption that is through Christ." This
way of justification even now began to be clear to my
mind, notwithstanding I had not fully comprehended
it; for I yet believed the priest could forgive sins,
and the intercessions of the Virgin Mary must help
us to heaven, and if no mass were read for me after
my death I would in the end still have to wander in
hell. Yet, as Pater Busch was determined to break
the neck of the little word "alone," and sought out
of this to prove Luther's translation of the Bible
false, an inward voice did not allow me longer to hold
my peace. " Am I allowed to ask a question, Mr.

PETER M GELLING. 355

Prehendary?" asked I. "Let us hear," answered he,
with a sullen air. "If I say Mr. Prebendary teaches
us religion, or Mr. Prebendary teaches us alone relig-
ion, what is the diiference?" "Out with you! out
with you ! I will not suflfer such heretical poison in
my class." I had by the time these words were
uttered reached the door, and again thought of the.
"love of God shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy
Ghost."

I again found myself in my prison. Yet my hours
of suffering were to be shortened, for the Easter
holidays were approaching, and they were then com-
pelled to let me out so that I could go home. I was
admonished, under the most fearful threatenings, to
attend the Church regularly while at home. When
on Easter-Sunday I went to the holy mass at Weiden-
thal, to pastor Stoeckel, he delivered a sermon on
the Scriptures appointed for the occasion, which in-
terested me very little, for it seemed to me as if a
drunken man were blabbering over some religious
words. When he came to the place where he was
to chant the Gospel, which, like every thing else, is
chanted in Latin, I was especially attentive to his dis-
course. ^'- Nabelacula fabelacula" it sounded, among
other things, so that it appeared to me more like the
Chinese than Latin. 0, thought I, if you do not
know what you are chanting yourself, of what ad-
vantage can it be to others ? and at the same moment
I left the church.

When I came home I met a Protestant student
from Speier, by the name of Kraft, who was an
upright, pious youth, and who appeared to me to have
something of the love of God; for he was always

356 GEE MAN MISSIONARIES.

very quiet, and talked in a mild, loving, modest, and
feeling manner. "God bless you," exclaimed he.
when he saw me, and his eyes beamed with joy:
"I have heard of your afflictions in Speier, and all
the faithful in the town are praying earnestly for
you. They are prepared to give you lodging and
boarding free, if it is your object to seek the truth. In
the mean time you can pursue your studies in town."

At these words it appeared as if a thousand bells
were ringing in my ears, all proclaiming the love
of God shed abroad in the heart by the Holy Ghost.
" So I may even yet learn to preach !" 0, who could
describe ray feelings then ! My next thought was,
how can I be released from the cloister, and how
obtain my books?

When the classes commenced, I went without telling
my parents any thing of it to Speier. I knew that
they were soon to emigrate to America, so I easily
made an excuse. At ten o'clock in the morning I
entered the door of the monastery. The old porter
smiled secretly when he saw me come. " Mr. Under-
regent has been taken to task by the Bishop for his
bad treatment to you," whispered he in my ears.
"That matters nothing," said I; "all things shall
work together for good to them that love God." I
immediately hastened up to the regent and told him
that my parents would no longer be able to pay
any thing for me, as they were going to America, and
that I must therefore leave the cloister and study in
the town. Where shall I find language to express
the looks and actions of the regent? A satanic rage
was depicted upon his countenance, without breaking
out in words. Regret at my bad treatment, and rage

PETER M GELLING. 357

against my plans stirred the flame in his heart. "With
fearful step he hastened into the side chamber, jerked
three times with anger the innocent bell, so that it
was heard through the whole building. With half-
open eyes, and hand on his breast, the porter soon
entered the door. "Of Moelling's affairs keep every
thing still!" "Do you know," continued he to me,
" that a report is spread through town that you are
going to become a Protestant? Do your parents
know any thing of it? Have you ever expressed
yourself so ? Who put Schaidberger into your hands ?
Who, the Protestant Bible? Who has looked out
boarding-houses for you in town? Who has given
you false views of the only true Church?" "Yes,"
replied I, "the Under-regent and Pater Busch have
done this ! You say ' the only true Church,' and
Pater Busch said lately Cfratia estis, 'by grace are ye
saved through faith,' etc., and Mr. Under-regent says
that ' Rome is the seven-hilled city on which the
great whore sitteth.' " " Such nonsense, verily, no
priest can teach," interrupted he ; " but I know what
you have in your head." I took leave of him and
hastened up into my dormitory. There I put on all
my pantaloons, and what else I could pack on to
myself, and the large priest's coat over the whole,
with the most necessary books under my arm, and
quickly slipped out of the cloister.

My friend Kraft was already standing without, and
he took me to the nearest Protestant house, where I
was cordially received and welcomed. They were
rejoiced to see a young man who was anxious to
escape from darkness and to seek the truth and the
light of the Gospel.

358 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

The consistorial counselor Rust preached on the
next Sabbath from Paul to the Romans, iv, 25 : " Who
was delivered for our offenses, and Avas raised again
for our justification." Here I for the first time saw
clearly what sin and righteousness were. I examined
myself closely, and found my own experience to cor-
respond with what the preacher had said.

I began earnestly to seek, read much in the holy
Scriptures, and often, like other believers, tried to
pray from the heart, but did not succeed ; and when
I kneeled down it often appeared to me that some one
stood behind to disturb me, and I on one occasion
arose from my knees in great fear.

Under such circumstances the summer season passed
away. After some months I received a letter from
my parents in America, through which I was induced
to go there also.

Yet ever the words of that sermon resounded in
my heart. With fearfulness I stepped on board the
ship that was to bring me over the great ocean, no
more to see my old father-land; but I thought that in
America, where no one knew that I was a Catholic, I
would become closely united to the pious.

We entered the sea at Rotterdam. Many a time
in the night I stood by the mast with a heavy heart,
and sighed to my Savior for peace and the pardon of
my sins, for the love of God and the witness of the
Holy Spirit. But solitary and lonely as the nightly
waves of the rolling deep was my heart.

One evening, as the sun went down so grandly that
it would have been beyond the power of any artist to
represent the beautiful grouping of clouds, my eyo
rested on the evening sky; "so Christ Avill come to

PETER M GELLING. 359

judge tlie earth in righteousness" resounded deep in
my heart. Without obtaining any further knowledge
I landed in the New World. My sins made me more
restless every day; sufferings and disappointments
crossed my path and humbled me to the dust. I felt
that my sins and erring ways had brought these suf-
ferings upon me. I sought to pray more earnestly for
knowledge and deliverance. I was often very sorry
for all my sins, so that I wept in solitary places.
One evening when I felt very sad, and was about to
leave my work-shop, I looked again into the Bible
and read, " Call upon me in trouble and I will deliver
thee, and thou shal^. praise me." Psa. 1, 15. I felt
something in my heart in the reading of these words
that I had not felt before. There were some fore-
bodings of freedom, the dawnings of grace in my
soul. I kneeled down and prayed, which I could now
do with more confidence than before. Never had I
seen my lost condition so clearly as I did now. I
could clearly see how far I had gone from the Savior.
What a happy feeling it must be, thought I, to have
our sins destroyed and to have the peace and love of
God in the heart ! I visited all the churches I knew
of in order to find this treasure. In the anguish of
my soul I once went to hear a missionary preach, but
his discourse appeared to me like the prattling of a
parrot. He had connected some passages from the
Bible with some philosophical parentheses mixed in,
and he neither knew nor felt any thing of that which
I so much desired.

One evening I said to my mother, " If I only knew a
Church in the world where I could find peace I would
gladly go to it." "Go once," said she, "over there

360 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

to our neighbor's house; there they pray and sing
half the night, and are often so full of joy and love
to God as to shout aloud." I felt like pushing the
sun down in order to hasten the approach of evening ;
scarcely was it dark when I stood at the door of the
house. The door was kindly opened to me, and
brother Meekens came immediately and gave me his
hand, and asked me whether I too felt that I was a
poor sinner? "0, yes," said I, "this I have felt for
a long time ; but I desire to obtain the pardon of my
sins, peace, and the love of God.'' "Jesus will give
you all this, if you are in earnest. We only can pray
with and for you." With these words we went into a
small retired house, standing back, where they could
worship without being disturbed. Soon we had a
tolerably large assembly. Brother Meekens preached
from the third chapter of John, on the subject of the
new birth, and how the sinner must prepare himself
for it.

As a Catholic I had been under the delusion that
baptism was the new birth, and I thought very strange
of the words, " Ye must be born again, or ye can not
enter into the kingdom of heaven." Tears rolled
from the preacher's eyes, and I felt his words like a
cutting sword piercing deep into my heart. Their
hymns made such a powerful impression upon my soul
that I could not refrain from tears. When the brother
had closed the exhorter called for penitents to come
to the altar of prayer; I immediately fell upon my
knees, and then he prayed with such power and unc-
tion that even a Catholic bishop might have become
afraid of hell. I melted into tears, and began to
wrestle earnestly, and to pray. "Lord, I will not let

PETER MOELLING. 361

thee go except thou bless me : Jesus take my heart
and give me thine," was my cry. Our meeting con-
tinued with singing and praying, without intermission
and without my once rising from my knees, till three
o'clock in the morning. This was in the spring of
1847. One more prayer was offered, and this by a
child of eight years, who prayed especially for me, as
I could not yet believe. "Lord," said the child, "do
pluck this brand from the burning ! shall he burn for-
ever?" At these words I could take fast hold on the
Savior ; and who could take him from me again ? I
could now really believe and know what it was to be-
lieve. My sins fell from me as one casts away a filthy
garment. I felt that all my sins were destroyed
through the blood of Christ. I had the peace of
God and the love of God shed abroad in my heart
through the Holy Ghost. No brother was so lowly
that I could not embrace him in my arms, with songs
of praise and rejoicing for all his goodness to the
children of men. I now again thought on the promise
of the Lord, " I will deliver thee and thou shalt praise
me." All my penitential tears, all wrestling and
struggling, all anguish and bitter hours departed from
me ; old things had passed away and all things were
become new. "When the Lord turned again the cap-
tivity of Zion we were like them that dreamed."
Eight days after this I joined the German Methodist
Church, under brother Tostrick, in the city of New
Orleans, when the church in the Third Municipality
was dedicated.

God be thanked that Schaidberger published his
experience ; which, perhaps, he did with prayers and

tears that many souls might be awakened through it :

31

362 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

with the same view I have written this ; and may God,
in mercy, grant that all those who read these lines
may not depart from the feet of Jesus till they hear
the blessed word from his mouth, "My son, my
daughter, thy sins are forgiven thee !"

FREDERIC HELLER. 363

CHAPTER XXVIII.

FREDERIC HELLER — H. F IE GE N B A U M— F.
W. FLOCKEN.

EXPERIENCE OP FREDERIC HELLER.

I WAS born in the duchy of Nassau, September 17,
1807, and was brought up in the Lutheran Church,
which in that country is much influenced by rational-
ism. Notwithstanding my religious instruction, and
confirmation, and taking the sacrament of the Lord's
supper, I became an infidel. When I left my parental
home I lived as the youth in G|fmany are accustomed
to live; I often had reproaches of conscience, and
formed purposes to mend my life, and thought if there
was a heaven, such as the Bible describes, it is im-
possible for all those who call themselves Christians
to reach it.

In traveling through Germany I met with a num-
ber of infidel philosophers and rationalists, who re-
garded the Bible as a book to keep the ignorant in
subjection, but was not intended for the cultivated
and learned. This was a new support to my infi-
delity ; yet, when I meditated in my lonely retirement,
my conscience often waked up, and the word sounded
in my ears, "Whosoever believeth not shall be
damned." I finally found a true Christian, and
made known- to him my condition. He gave me
good advice, told me to leave ofi" sinning, and

364 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

advised me to pray. I then used all my efforts to
make myself better, and succeeded in laying off some
outbreaking sins, but the restlessness and disquietude
of my heart continued as before.

A year afterward I met the same man, and told him
that with all my efforts to make myself better I was
as bad as ever. He told me that I had not prayed
aright; that I must pray with faith. We parted in
tears. I had to pass through a wood, and in trying
to follow the good man's instruction I kneeled down
and prayed. How long I remained in this place I do
not know, but when I came to myself my heart was
filled with joy and gladness. My burden was gone,
and I went on my way home rejoicing.

In my neighborhood I had no one to Avhom I could
open my heart, and through the temptation of the
enemy and the want of proper encouragement, I soon
lost my peace, and unbelief gained the ascendency.
I thought if I were in America and away from old
associations, in some lonely place, I could serve God
better ; but I had not the means to pay the expenses
of the journey. Without my asking for it a friend
offered to pay my passage-money if I would go, and
I gladly availed myself of his kindness. I left my
father-land, and after a three months' journey I ar-
rived in Jackson county, Indiana, in the year 1834.
Now the impression came, " Offer unto God thanks-
giving, and pay thy vows to the Most High." But,
alas ! instead of fulfilling my promises I became im-
mersed in the cares of the world, and sought for
pleasure in the fleeting objects of time; but I had no
peace in my soul.

One Sunday I visited an old citizen who had filled

FREDERIC HELLER. 366

my mind with prejudice against the Methodists. He
was very sick, and was near death. I saw that he
was very restless and unsatisfied. As he had been an
old Revolutionary soldier, I told him that ho had faced
the enemies of liberty in the Revolutionary war, and
I hoped he would have the courage now to face death
without fear. He answered, "No, I am going to the
second death; I already feel the flames of hell kin-
dled in my breast. I knew my duty but I did it not,"
He sent for a local preacher to pray for him, and soon
departed. From this time my conscience was waked
up again. The solemn warning of the old soldier
often resounded in my ears.

There were occasionally German preachers, though
not Methodists, passing through our country, but they
talked more about making collections than about re-
ligion; so I lost ray confidence in them, and attended
service in the English Methodist church. So far as
I understood the sermons they greatly pleased me,
but I never became deeply awakened. In the year
1839 there was a great revival of religion in the
neighborhood where I lived, and in this revival it
pleased God to awaken and convert my wife, and she
joined the Methodist Church. This I did not like,
yet I thought I had no right to control her conscience.
She often went weeping to prayer and class meeting
and wept as she returned. At last it pleased God,
on a beautiful May morning, in the year 1839, to bless
the preaching of the word to my good. I was com-
pelled to acknowledge that the law of God was
righteous, just, and good, though it condemned my
soul. The preacher. Rev. Calvin Ruter, presiding
elder of the district, showed how the sinner could be

366 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

delivered from the sentence of the Law; but all the
promises of the Gospel fled past me like flashes of
lightning, and I could find no ray of God's pardoning
mercy in my poor heart. I could neither eat, nor
drink, nor sleep. While the Bible informed me that
Jesus could help me, the enemy of my soul told me
that as I had grieved the Savior so long by disobe-
dience, he would not receive me till I was a better
man ; that I had tried to become better and had not
succeeded. In the afternoon I went to meeting again,
but instead of finding comfort my condition appeared
worse. I returned home with a heavy-laden heart ;
my wife encouraged me to go with her to Church in
the evenino;. This I refused to do, for I thought the
Methodists had been the cause of all my trouble. I
however accompanied her to the church door, and re-
mained outside, among the scofi"ers, till I became so
tormented that I could not stay, and so I returned
home. Even here I found no peace, and went back
to the church. An invitation was given to penitents
to kneel at the altar of prayer, but fear and shame
kept me back. Several were powerfully converted,
and I again formed the resolution to seek till I found
mercy at the hand of God.

I went home, and in the most intense agony I pray-
ed through the whole night till the dawn of the
next day. I now felt an entire resignation to the
Divine will, and waited with anxiety for the hour of
public worship to arrive. In the morning a Roman
Catholic man came to get me to do some work for
him. I told him that I intended to go to Church.
"Are you going to become a Methodist?" said he.
I replied: "I don't know; but one thing I do know,

FREDERIC HELLER. 367

and that is, that we must be converted if we ever
expect to reach heaven." I told him that we had
sinned long enough against God, and I felt that I must
be converted if I would be happy. I at length per-
suaded him to go with me to the meeting. He became
awakened through the influence of the Holy Spirit,
was converted, and united with the Church. He has
since died happy, and his son is now a pious member
and steward in our Church.

When we came to the church a hymn was sung,
every line of which appeared to apply to my case.
When the text was read, " quench not the Spirit," a
new world of sins arose before me, and I felt that
I had too often grieved and quenched the Holy Spirit.
What brother Ruter said in his sermon I know not ;
but when it was finished I could praise my Savior
with a joyful heart. Old things had passed away
and all things had become new. What tongue can
express the joy of a new-born soul, or what pen
describe the bliss of those who are delivered from the
bondage of sins ? I now loved God and the children
of God, and united with the Methodist Episcopal
Church. I loved prayer and class meetings, and was
well satisfied with the choice I had made with regard
to Church fellowship.

But soon a new conflict commenced in my soul. I
had many of my countrymen around me, and I felt a
great desire for their salvation. My English brethren
soon saw my anxiety and concern for them, and gave
me license to exhort. With fear and trembling 1
commenced this work ; and after laboring two years
as an exhorter and class-leader I was recommended
to the quarterly conference, who granted me license

3G8 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

as a local preacher. The love of Christ constrained
me to labor for the good of my countrymen, and I
accepted the license.

Though I did not think I could take up the cross
and become a traveling preacher, as I did not feel
competent for this work, the conviction was constantly
deepened in my heart that it was my duty to devote
myself wholly to God. After some severe conflicts
and trials, I sold my effects, and in the year 1846
I was received on probation in the Ohio conference.

The Lord has blessed my labors, and many have
been converted to him. As long as the Lord gives
me health and the Church needs my services, I intend
to devote myself to this cause.

EXPERIENCE OF H. FIEGENBAUM.

I was born on the 18th of October, in the year
1820, in Westphalia, kingdom of Prussia, Germany.
In the year 1833 our family migrated to America,
and about midsummer my parents with five children
landed in New Orleans. This was the year when the
cholera raged with such violence, and scores fell
victims to it every day. A gracious Providence pre-
served our lives, and we took steamboat for St. Louis,
which we reached in nine days. We did not remain
long in the city, but moved to the country, and settled
seventy-five miles west of St. Louis, in St. Charles
county, Missouri. Here we were in an entire wil-
derness, on which account no one grieved more than
ray mother, as she had been converted in Germany,
and was now deprived of Church privileges and Chris-
tian associations.

Here we lived five years without a church or

n. FIEGENBAUM. 369

preacher. "Alas, children," said mother frequently,
"we will all be heathens yet." We children found
a manner of life according to our wishes. Hunting,
fishing, and roaming through the forests, was our
employment whenever we found a leisure hour from
other labors; but wdth all this our heavenly Father
watched over us. We had a pious mother. The Sab-
bath day was not forgotten; for every Sunday we
had to read our Bibles, and she made explanations to
us of difficult passages.

I was sorry that we were deprived of schooling,
but finally the time came when we were supplied with
a preacher. He came from Germany as a missionary
to North America. This man was an evangelical Lu-
theran, and in accordance with the wishes of my
parents, I went to him for instruction in the doctrines
of the Church, and was confirmed. During the time
I was receiving instruction I was awakened, and a
few weeks afterward was converted, and felt myself
one of the happiest beings on earth. But being left
to myself, and not properly understanding the nature
of the blessing that I had experienced, nor knowing
how to retain it, I fell into a state of indifi'erence and
hardness of heart, which continued for five years.
Yet God restrained me from outbreaking sins; and
as I had, in my confirmation, renewed my baptismal
vows and was now recognized as a communicant, I
was appointed to an office in the Church ; and thus
I lived and labored within her pale, a backslider and
a benighted sinner, till I was finally waked up through
the preaching of brother Swahlen, who was the first
German Methodist preacher we had ever seen. He
made application to preach in our church, and re-

370 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

ceived permission to do so; but when we found that
he was a Methodist the door of the church was closed
against him by my colleagues, the trustees. But as
he had made an appointment and could not get into
the church, he took his stand by an old tree in front
of it, and preached to the people. His word was not
lost upon us : he visited us in our houses, and had he
not been a Methodist he would have been received
as an angel of God.

I left this neighborhood and went to St. Louis,
where I fell into bad company, and made rapid pro-
gress in a course of sin. Yet I still went to Church,
sometimes to one and then another, till finally I was
told that my sister, who also was now living in the
city, had joined the Methodists. Through her I
became acquainted with brother L. S. Jacoby, and
brother Casper Jost, under whose preaching I was
again awakened and converted.

It was a hard matter to get my consent to be a
Methodist, and still harder for me to go to the altar
of prayer. I was afraid that if I were converted
among the Methodists at the altar of prayer I should
have to shout; however, when the Lord granted me
peace I forgot all this, and my Savior was my all,
and in all.

In my early youth I frequently had strong desires
to do something for the cause of God; especially
at times when my mother talked to me about Jesus
and heaven. But this missionary spirit died in me
when I came to America. However, at my confirma-
tion, this feeling — a desire to do something for the
cause of God — was waked up anew in my heart, but
I could see no way open for me to do any thing.

FREDERIC W. FLOCKEN, 371

When I was converted in St. Louis, the impression
again was strong on my mind that I ought to preach ;
and as I thought over this matter I became very
much alarmed, for I now saw the responsibilities rest-
ing upon a minister of the Gospel, and the infinite
value of an immortal soul. Although the impression
was strong on my mind, I felt disposed to shrink from
the task. After hesitating some time, and seriously
reflecting on this subject, when the providence of
God opened the way for me, I started in this great
work.

In the fall of 1847 I was received into the Illinois
conference, and from that day to this I have endeav-
ored to publish the word of the Lord. I thank God
that I ever found the Methodist Church, and that she
received me. In this Church I hope to remain till
the Lord shall call me home.

EXPERIENCE OP FKEDERIC W. FLOCKEN.

I was born near the city of Odessa, southern Rus-
sia, in the year 1831. Both my parents were Ger-
mans, and members of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church. They took great pains to make me early
acquainted with the saving truths of religion ; but
shortly after I had entered the lyceum at Odessa, the
desire arose in me to unite with the Greek Catholic
Church. Several reasons influenced me in this ; first,
because it was the religion of the institution; and, sec-
ondly, because its ceremonial pomp was more captivat-
ing to my young mind than the simplicity of the Protest-
ant worship. Without the knowledge of my parents, and
in their absence, I observed and practiced all the cere-
monies peculiar to the Greek Church, till I had reached

872 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

that age "when, in accordance witli the usages of the
Evangelical Church, I became a candidate for confirm-
ation.

I received the preparatory instruction from a min-
ister of the Reformed Church. But my heart re-
mained as cold as ever. I could not conceal this state
of things from my parents, for they were deeply con-
cerned about the salvation of my soul. My father
asked me, therefore, whether I had experienced a
change of heart ; and when I had to answer, " No,"
my confirmation was postponed for one year.

An Evangelical Lutheran minister gave me confirm-
atory instruction the following year — 1846. At its
conclusion I deeply felt the necessity of a change of
heart, and I verily believe that the Lord commenced
the work of grace in my soul on the 31st of March,
1846, the day of my confirmation. Full of good
resolutions I looked forward to the future, and hoped
to be able henceforth to lead a new life. But, alas !
soon all these good impressions disappeared, and I,
as well as my parents, could see that old things had
not yet passed away.

In the year 1849 I left the parental roof, in order
to go to America, partly from a desire to see the new
world, and partly in order to escape military service
in the native country of my father, the Palatinate of
the Rhine. I departed with the blessing of my father,
and joined a company of pious Germans, who just at
that time were preparing to emigrate to the United
States. We arrived in New York the 22d of October,
1849, after a voyage of one hundred days. The first
five months of my sojourn in America I spent at the
house of Mr. Schauffler, in Boston. The prayers and

FREDERIC W. FLOCKEN. 873

exhortations of this dearly-beloved man disturbed my
mind to such a degree that I passed many a night in
ardent prayer to the Lord. But instead of telling
him of the anguish of soul which I suffered, I left his
house and returned to New York. Upon my arrival
in that city I attended, several times, religious serv-
ices at the church of Rev. Mr. Guiding, and also at
the Episcopal church in Houston-street.

At last, one of the companions of my voyage across
the sea, who had remained in New York, invited me
to attend divine service at the church of his choice.
This was the Methodist church in Second-street, to
which afterward I, as well as many others, became ar-
dently attached.

Our dear father Tiemann was the first, and brother
Hertel the second, Methodist preacher that I ever
heard. The preaching of both made such an impres-
sion upon me that I resolved never again to go to that
church ; for it seemed as if such preaching stripped
me of all the moral goodness which I imagined
myself to possess. But in consequence of an affec-
tionate invitation on the part of two brethren, who
still are members of our Church, I consented to at-
tend once more. Brother Doering preached. At
the conclusion of this sermon I felt that there was
no soundness in me, but that from head to foot there
was nothing but sin, nothing but what deserved con-
demnation.

When the invitation was given for seekers of re-
ligion to come forward to the altar, it seemed to me
as if the whole congregation were rising and going
forward. This impression was further strengthened
by the earnest and importunate prayers which the

374 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

brethren offered up ; and my astonishment was great
indeed when, at the conclusion of the services, I saw
myself the only mourner at the altar.

I left the church still unforgiven, but with the firm
determination to continue seeking religion at home.
I did so for two weeks.

On the 17th of April, in the afternoon, I locked
myself up in a room at the house of my traveling
companion, and resolved to persevere in prayer till
I knew that the Lord had forgiven my sins. I
wrestled in prayer three times, when suddenly a voice
seemed to whisper in my ear, " Give it up ; the Lord
will certainly not hear thee I" About to leave the
room in despair, that blessed promise of God came
to my mind, " Ask, and ye shall receive," etc. For
the fourth time I engaged in agonizing prayer, pre-
senting this his own promise to the Lord, and soon
received the witness of my acceptance. Rejoicing, I
communicated to brother Peering what the Lord had
done for me, and was received by him on probation.
In the course of the following year brother Hoerner,
of Newark, New Jersey, gave me license to exhort.
He has since entered into his eternal rest. On the
23d of October, 1852, the quarterly conference of the
Second-street congregation granted me license to
preach, and in May, 1853, I was received on proba-
tion by the New York conference. Since that time I
have endeavored to labor in the Lord's vineyard, and
am resolved, by the help of God, to continue in his
service till my labors upon earth shall be finished.

Note. — Brother Flocken was recently appointed to the mission in
Bulgaria, Turkey. It is intended that he shall make his native city,
Odessa, the center of his missionary operations. He left New York

FREDERIC W. FLOCKEN. 375

on the ISth of December, 1858, for Bremen, Germany, where he will
probablj' remain during the winter, and labor under the direction of
brother Jacoby, superintendent of the foreign German mission. His
family will share with him in the hardships and deprivations of his
missionary toils ; and the pious should especially pray that the Great
Head of the Church may bless their efforts in sowing the seeds of
divine truth in that distant laud.

376 GERMAN MISSIONARIES,

CHAPTER XXIX.

R. SHORE — RUDOLPH H A V I U H R S T — T H E -
DORE MILLER.

EXPERIENCE OF R. SHOBE.

I WAS born in Basle, Switzerland, April 15, 1821.
I enjoyed the benefit of a religious education, my
parents being members of the society of the Moravian
Brethren in that city. Among them I grew up and
united with them at the age of fourteen. My mother
taught me to pray when quite young, and my father
gathered the whole family regularly around the family
altar. My youthful associates often pointed the finger
of scorn at me for attending the meetings rather than
the pleasure-parties. But such was the grace of God
in my heart that I patiently bore all the ridicule that
could possibly be heaped upon me, and found more
delight in the service of God than even in the inno-
cent recreations and pleasures of youth. Surrounded
by such a religious atmosphere, by the grace of God
I was led into the path of life, and taught to love my
Savior almost without being aware of it. On the 20th
of April, 1836, I renewed my baptismal covenant
amid many tears. It was a happy time indeed. I
could feel and enjoy the love of God in my heart;
and it was my earnest desire to be a humble fol-
lower of the meek and lowly Jesus.

But, alas ! by the subtilty of the archenemy I fell

R. SHOBE. 377

into his snares. I went to live among strangers, and
became neglectful in the discharge of my religious
duties. I wandered from God and indulged in the
pleasures of this world, till I was graciously overtaken
by sickness, when I again heard the voice of the
Spirit of God, warning me of my sinful career, and
pointing me again to " the Lamb of God, which taketh
away the sin of the world." Conscious of having
gone astray from the fold of Christ, and feeling the
burden of my sins, I resolved to return to my Savior,
whom I had forsaken. As soon as my health re-
turned, and I was able to leave the room, I packed up
my things and left that place. When I had traveled
a mile or two and arrived at a solitary place, I sat
down under a tree by the road-side, took out my
long-neglected pocket Bible, and began to read those
gracious invitations and promises of a loving Savior
that are so full of comfort to a penitent sinner.
Soon my soul was drawn away to my Savior, and
falling down on my knees, with streaming eyes, 1
implored the mercy of God for the sake of Him
who died on the cross. And, glory to God ! while
lying there prostrate and unseen by any human eye,
God spoke peace to my soul. My sorrow was turned
into joy, and I sprang to my feet a new creature, and
happy in God and in my Redeemer. This occurred
in the early part of the spring, 1843.

In the spring of 1844 I emigrated to the United
States. My parents followed me in the fall of the
same year, and settled near Hermann, Missouri.
There I for the first time heard a Methodist sermon
preached by Rev. William Schreck. But as he did
not preach very often, and on account of my natural

378 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

timidity, I did not become acquainted with him or with
the members of the Church, and so for some time longer
remained a stranger to the doctrines of Methodism.

In July, 1845, 1 went to St. Louis, and united there
with the Evangelical Church. The following year I
took up my residence at Highland, Madison county,
Illinois. As there was no regular Protestant preach-
ino-, except occasionally by the Methodists, I had
no other resort than to attend their meetings. The
first sermon I heard there was by the late Rev. Mr.
Ileminghaus. I was so well pleased with his ser-
mon, and convinced of the pure Bible truths set forth
therein, that I gladly and unhesitatingly made use of
the opportunity, and united with the Methodist Epis-
copal Church on the same day. All my prejudices
were cleanly swept away, and I embraced her doc-
trines and discipline with my whole heart. As soon
as I was received into full membership the quarterly
conference gave me license to exhort, in which capac-
ity I tried to serve the Church and to advance the
cause of Christ according to the gifts of God be-
stowed upon me.

In the fall of 1849 I was licensed to preach. I
felt entirely unworthy of such a responsible post,
and in my estimation not qualified for the proper dis-
charge of the duties connected therewith; yet I durst
not refuse it, for I was fully convinced that it was the
will of God, and consequently my duty to accept it.
When I joined the Church I laid myself entirely on
the altar, resolving to serve God and to exercise my
gifts to the best of my ability ; consequently, after I
had laid my hands to the plow, I did not dare to re-
tract my steps. It was my greatest delight to spend

R. snoBE. 379

my spare time in prayer and study, and to proclaim
the glad tidings of salvation to my fellow-men.

In the spring of 1850 Rev. Philip Kuhl, presiding
elder on St. Louis district, to which Highland mission,,,*:
at that time belonged, asked me to enter the regular , *
work. This question came somewhat unexpectedly; .
but still I felt it to be my duty. But there Avere
many difficulties in my way that seemed to be of
sufficient weight for me to withhold my consent. A
few months afterward I was again requested to join
the traveling ministry. I was strongly convinced of
my duty to obey the call, and was not unwilling to
do so, but my family circumstances were such that
they would not allow me to enter the itinerancy.

Several years passed, during which I tried to be
useful in the capacity of local preacher. But not-
withstanding the seemingly well-grounded causes that
obstructed my way against entering the regular work,
I felt very unhappy and cast down in my mind, for
I was so strongly impressed with the duty God and
the Church required me to perform, that, as a con-
sequence of my disobedience, peace and happiness
departed from me, and I felt most miserable. I
prayed earnestly to God, that if it was his will that
I should give up myself entirely to his work, to re-
move the obstacles and to open the way for me ; and
the Lord did so. All the difficulties were removed
and the way opened, so that in 1855 I Avas received
as a probationer in the Illinois conference, and ap-
pointed to Decatur mission. Peace and happiness
were restored, for I knew and felt that I was doing
the work that I should have been engaged in several
years before. In 1856 I was transferred to the Gin-

380 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

cinnati conference, where I have been endeavoring
ever since to advance the cause of Christ according
to the ability God has given me.

EXPERIENCE OF RUDOLPH HATIGHORST.

I was born on the 20th day of June, 1829, at Rad-
bergen, in the kingdom of Hanover. My father was
a school-teacher, and he destined me to the same
profession. It w^as now my desire to become pious
in order to be useful. I was instructed and brought
up in the doctrines of the Lutheran Church; but as
its religion had degenerated into mere formalities,
and as there was not one individual that could testify
of a heart-felt piety, I did not learn the way of sal-
vation.

Early in my youth the question often arose in my
mind, What must I do to be saved? and the answer
was, Cease to do evil, and be good, and thou shalt be
saved in the world to come. I often tried to become
pious in this way, but of course found no peace or a
change of heart. In such a condition I lived eighteen
years in Germany, and then emigrated to the United
States of America, as I firmly believe, providentially.
I settled in Mason county, Illinois, where two of my
brothers were living. I soon heard of the different
sects of religion, of which I had not heard any thing
in Germany, and especially of the Methodist Church,
against Avhich I was very much prejudiced, because I
was told that many of my countrymen had fallen
from the faith and become Methodists. I did not then
know the doctrines and principles of the Church, and
on account of my prejudices I had no desire of be-
coming acquainted with them.

I

RUDOLPH HAVIGHORST. 381

One day I had a conversation with an unconverted
man, who told me that he knew the Methodists very
well ; that they preach that man must be born again ;
that they pretend to know when their sins are par-
doned, and that they will go to heaven. After this
conversation the words "regeneration" and "justifica-
tion" were so deeply impressed on my mind that I
never could forget them. Ever and anon I heard a
voice saying, If thou wouldst die happy thou must be
born again ; thy sins must be pardoned.

Soon after this, in the year 1848, I went to Mere-
dosia, Illinois, where one of my brothers was living.
Immediately after my arrival I was laid on a sick-bed
with the congestive fever. When I came near death
I feared greatly to be cast into hell with all those that
forget God, and prayed to God to spare my life once
more, and made a vow to forsake sin and to live for
him. When my health was restored I tried with all
my strength to do better; but, of course, could not
succeed, for I did not know the way of salvation, and
consequently my strength failed.

Some time after this I moved to Beardstown, Illi-
nois, and visited all the Protestant churches, English
as well as German. In the German Methodist
church, which I usually visited on Sunday evenings,
my sinful condition was more clearly revealed to me
than ever before, as also the necessity of a change of
heart. But I fell now into another mistake. I con-
sidered myself too unworthy to obtain mercy, and
tried to make myself better first by reading the Bible
and doing Avorks of repentance. I went for the first
time to the late Rev. Fr. Kerkmann, and told him my
determination to repent for half a year longer, and

382 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

that I would then, no doubt, receive remission of my
sins. He pointed me at once to Christ as a present
Savior, Avho was willing and ready to pardon my sins
noio.

The next evening I went to a prayer meeting. My
sins lay like a heavy burden upon me. I fell on my
knees and prayed from the depths of my heart. It
was a hard struggle with the power of darkness.
But as soon as I laid myself on the altar, my faith
was strengthened so that I could believe on the Lord
Jesus Christ as my Savior. The Lamb of God took
away my sins — the love of God was shed abroad in
my heart by the Holy Ghost, so that I could say
Abba, Father. About a week later, in October, 1849,
I united with the Methodist Episcopal Church.

When the Lord pardoned my sins I had a strong
sympathy for all men, and felt as if I should tell them
what the Lord had done for my soul. About nine
months after my conversion I went to Quincy, Illi-
nois. Here I became first school-teacher and after-
ward colporteur, when I received license to exhort
and soon afterward license to preach. This was a
time of great trial, for I felt my incapacity and un-
worthiness, but I prayed day and night that the will
of the Lord only might be done. I gave myself, at
last, to God and the Church, praying earnestly that
if it were not the will of the Lord that I should
preach for him, to prevent me from taking this re-
sponsible office. At the same time I was willing to
obey the call of the Church and listen to the voice of
the Almighty.

It was in the fall of 1850 when I entered the itin-
erancy; and, I tliauk God, within these eight years T

■ THEODORE MILLER. 383

have been permitted to "win many souls to Christ. I am
fully determined to devote my whole life to this work,
and pray that I may be instrumental in saving yet
many souls.

EXPERIENCE OF THEODORE MILLER.

In the year 1830 I first saw the light of this life
in the kingdom of Prussia. The days of my child-
hood were spent at home in the bosom of our family.
To go to school and study diligently was my greatest
delight, and I know not that I ever willingly neglected
Church or school. I lived retired, and never could find
much pleasure in the plays of my schoolmates. Yet,
as my parents did not take much pains to restrain me,
I became a self-willed and disobedient boy. In my
fourteenth year, according to the custom of the Lu-
theran Church, to which we belonged, I was con-
firmed, and in the most solemn manner renewed my
baptismal vow ; but how soon was all this forgotten
and efiticed from my mind! From this time I lived
a quiet life, and did not go with my fellow-youth to
the dances and plays and various amusements. My
place was always filled at the church on Sabbath morn-
ing, and my Sabbath afternoons were spent in read-
ing in the family Bible. Yet, with all this, the Bible
was to me a sealed book, which I only read because I
liked the beautiful narratives it contains. It could
scarcely be otherwise, as I had never heard of the re-
newal and change of the heart in a sinner, and relig-
ion was only exhibited to me in Church ceremonies.
My dear parents were as far removed from experi-
mental godliness as I was. Through ignorance and
the blindness of mv heart I often felt my spirituoJ

384 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

poverty, but knew nothing of that better portion.
In this condition I lived till I was seventeen years
old, when it pleased God so to dii-ect his providence
that my parents determined to remove to the United
States of America : and in June, 1847, we were per-
mitted to step on the shore of the American conti-
nent. My parents, with a number of our countrymen,
settled in northern Wisconsin, where we Avere among
the first settlers of that part of the country. Soon
after we arrived there it pleased God to lead me to
the borders of the grave, by means of a severe sick-
ness, which compelled me to keep my bed for nine
weeks. During all this time I did not see the danger
I was in had I died in my impenitent state.

In our new settlement we were a long time without
hearing the word of God. Thus we lived without God
and his grace, and often profaned the Lord's day.
Finally we found an opportunity to hear the word of
God at the house of one of our neighbors. Here I first
saw and heard a Methodist missionary. I knew not
what kind of preacher this was ; and, above all, I was
astonished that he kneeled down for prayers, which I
had never seen a preacher do before. He came after-
ward again, but on account of sickness could not
preach. In the summer of 1849 another missionary
came to us and preached, and continued to visit us
every three or four weeks. It now pleased my mer-
ciful heavenly Father to awaken me and bring me to
reflection.

In the summer of 1850 I, with a number of others,
joined the Church, on trial, at a quarterly meeting.
God, who commanded the light to shine out of dark-
ness, shined into my heart, and I was now more and

THEODORE MILLER. 385

more convinced by his Spirit of my lost condition. I
began to pray and seek for redemption, but at the
same time sought to establish a righteousness of my
own, while the righteousness which is by faith in
Christ I knew not. I had no peace with God, for I
knew him not as a Savior. I now lost all my desires
for sinful amusements, and they became a terror to
me. Alas, what a condition and what a struggle !
The more I sought to become righteous by my own
eflforts, the more I came to a knowledge of sin. I
often kneeled down in the wood, and cried with a loud
voice to God to hear my prayers, but I found no rest
for my soul.

One day, under the preaching of brother F. Kopp,
in the year 1851, I saw clearly that I had not a true
and saving faith. I spent the afternoon of that day
in reading and prayer. That faith, which is the gift
of God, I now was enabled to exercise. I looked up
to Jesus and claimed him as my Savior. In a mo-
ment old things passed away and all things became
new. I now felt a strong desire to do something for
the advancement of the cause of God and the salva-
tion of souls. I received license as an exhorter, and
labored some time in this office. In July, 1853, I re-
ceived license as a local preacher, and in the com-
mencement of the following winter I went to the
Fond du Lac mission.

Five years have passed away since I started, and I
thank God that I stand to-day a monument of his
mercy and grace. May our merciful Father in heaven
keep his servants faithful on the walls of Zion, and
give the grace to declare his truth till the world is
converted to God! I rejoice and praise Him that he
33

I

386 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

hath led me into the way of life, and that I and my
dear parents have been permitted to experience his
saving power. Yes, we rejoice in that godliness which
has the promise of the life that now is and of that
which is to come. May we be preserved faithful, and
finally be accounted worthy to sing the song of the
redeemed before the throne in heaven !

GEORGE A. REUTER. 387

CHAPTER XXX.

GEORGE A. REUTER— PAUL B ROD BECK— FRED-
ERIC SCHULER— HENRY ELLERBECK.

EXPERIENCE OF GEORGE ADAM REUTER.

I WAS born on the 18th of April, 1819, at Trauts-
kirchen, Bavaria. My parents endeavored to train
their chiklren, of which I was the youngest, in the
fear of the Lord. In due time I was apprenticed
to a cooper, with whom I came to America in 1837,
and settled near Cincinnati.

At this time the Germans knew but little of Meth-
odism, except that there was a family at Lawrence-
burg who had united with the Methodist Episcopal
Church, which produced great displeasure among their
countrymen. Some time afterward an acquaintance
of mine rented a farm near the Cincinnati camp-
ground, and attended the meetings at night, in order
to observe their doings. This man met me one day
at the Lower Market in Cincinnati, and told me all he
had seen and heard. I was astonished that there
were such fanatics in our enlightened age, and most
of all that there were Germans engaged in such a
matter.

The year following, 1843, I went to camp meeting
myself to witness the spectacle, and as soon as the
evening service had begun, my friend, above alluded
to, met me there. A young preacher occupied the

L

888 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

stand, and preached on Rev. ii, 5. I listened very
attentively, and to my surprise I heard a powerful
sermon. I became deeply convinced that I needed
conversion. But being a perfect stranger, and not
receiving further instructions, I did not know what to
do when the invitation was given to the mourners to
meet in the tent for prayer, and consequently I kept
my seat, greatly distressed in my mind. Presently
Dr. Nast and another brother came, fixing their eyes
upon me ; but I can not describe the feelings of that
moment. I was glad when they left me ; I considered
this as a magic power of the Methodists, whereupon
I left the place. While outside of the camp I heard
the shouts of Israel, which attracted my attention,
and I resolved to go near, but not quite so near as to
become a victim of their witchcraft. Seeing their
strange conduct, which was a mystery to me, I lost
all my serious impressions and returned home.

In the year 1844 a revival occurred in the United
Reformed Lutheran Church, in Avhich brother A. Ar-
nold and his sister Barbara Ruedel were soundly con-
verted to God. They told their happy experience to
my wife, and on her way home from the church, as
she mused on these things, she was converted, without
ever hearing the plan of salvation explained by a con-
verted preacher. When I came home that evening I
noticed that some strange thing had happened, and
inquired what it was. She told me, with tears, what
sister Ruedel had told her of conversion. All of a
sudden the scenes witnessed at the camp meeting
rose up before my mind. A few days subsequently
I had a conversation wath brother Arnold, when my
resolution was strengthened to serve the Lord ; and

GEORGE A. EEUTER. 389

two weeks afterward I found peace in the blood of the
Lamb. This took place in February, 1844, three
miles from Cincinnati, We, the young converts,
formed the " Zion's Church ;" but as we met with
many difficulties and opposition, a number of us
united with the Methodist Episcopal Church.

Soon after my conversion I felt it to be my sacred
duty to preach ; but I considered it a temptation of
Satan, and an inclination of my own heart, and tried
to subdue it. I was rejoicing in God, and went to all
my neighbors and spoke to them of the necessity to
be converted to God ; and it cheered me very much
to be the instrument, in the hand of God, of leading
some families to Christ.

. The way in which I came to make my i&rst effort in
public speaking was quite strange. There died a
woman in the neighborhood; and her husband, be-
cause he could not get any preacher, as he said, to
attend the funeral, wanted me to sing and pray. I
consented. But as many persons came, he thought it
would be a shame if there were no preaching, and
gave me a text, requesting me to preach from it.
I tried to excuse myself from taking upon me such
a responsibility, but in vain. And as there Avere
many of my acquaintances present, it was nearly
more than I could bear. The Lord blessed my feeble
efforts abundantly, and one family dates their conver-
sion back to this occasion. But soon afterward I
came into a great distress of mind for doing a thing
for which I had no authority. But, at the same
time, I felt greatly relieved by knowing that I had
done it in all simplicity, and without any desire
on my part to intrude into a strange office. In a

390 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

short time, however, Rev. John H. Earth gave me
license to exhort, and afterward I received license
to preach.

The way was now clear to my mind, and I knew
well what was the Avill of the Lord. Another trial
was coming on, and it was a very painful one too.
I received a call of the Church to enter the traveling
ministry ; but my wife was very much opposed to it.
I remonstrated with her, but without success. And
now the Lord laid his hands upon us and took our
little Eliza quite unexpectedly from our midst. Still,
she would not yield. Again the Lord visited us, and
laid our dear Margaretha upon the sick-bed, and let
her come so nigh unto death that I was called from
a love-feast in Race-Street Church to come home
quickly, if I wished to See her before she died.
What feelings were in my bosom I can not describe.
I begged my wife, with tears, to submit herself to the
will of God, before we had to give another victim.
This broke her will ; and our daughter began to re-
cover the same hour. This was a clear evidence to
me that the Lord had called me to labor in his vine-
yard. At the annual conference in 1850 I was ap-
pointed to Sandusky City, Ohio. The Lord has
assisted me greatly hitherto. Sinners have been
awakened and converted, some of Avhom have died in
peace, praising God and the Lamb for his redeeming
love. I am still on the walls of Zion, pointing sin-
ners to the cross, and resolved to be faithful till the
Lord shall call me hence.

PAUL BRODBECK. 301

EXPERIENCE OF PAUL BRODBECK.

I was born at Bingen, in the grand duchy of Ba-
den, Germany, in the year 1809. My parents were
strict Roman Catholics, and I was brought up in their
faith, and from my youth taught to observe the
ceremonies of the Roman Catholic Church. Like
many others in our old father-land, I felt a desire to
see the New World, and in the spring of 1834 came
to America, and settled in Erie, Pennsylvania. The
next year I was married in the city of Troy, New
York, to a young American lady, who was a member
of the Methodist Church. Though matrimony is con-
sidered by the Papal Church as a sacrament, and is
invalid unless consecrated by a Romish priest, I so
far relaxed my prejudices and observed the customs
of the country, as to consent that my wife should
have the choice of the minister who should join us
together. She selected Rev. Noah Levings, D. D.,
who accordingly performed the marriage ceremony.

In the spring of 1837 we moved to Portsmouth,
Ohio. I commenced going to the Methodist church
with my wife, and gradually became attached to their
doctrine and modes of worship ; but at the same time
I was very fond of the ball-room and the dance.

On the evening of the 31st of December, 1837, we
had a great ball in town, and at the same time the
Methodists held a watch-night meeting. After spend-
ing the forepart of the night at the ball-room,
dancing, suddenly something seemed to say to me,
" The Methodists hold a watch-night, and you must go
and see what they are doing." Accordingly I left
the ball-room about nine o'clock, and went to the

392 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

church and heard a sermon by Rev. Henry Turner,
then preacher in charge of Bigelow Chapeh I listened
■with great attention, but could not hear any thing
that — as I then thought — suited my case. At the
close of the sermon the minister descended from the
pulpit, came into the altar, and invited all seekers
of religion to come forward and kneel around the
altar for the prayers of the Church, and seek the
salvation of their souls.

While some were going forward for prayer and
some were joining the Church, my conscience told
me, "You must go, for you are a great sinner, or you
will be eternally lost." Immediately I conferred not
with flesh and blood, but yielded to the convictions
of the moment, went forward, joined the Church, and
threw myself down at the altar, and prayed and
wrestled like Jacob of old, till nearly twelve o'clock
at night, when, by the grace of God, I was enabled
to shout " glory," having obtained redemption through
the blood of Christ, even the forgiveness of my sins.
My wife all this time thought I was at the ball-room ;
and when I came home and told her what the Lord
had done for me, she also shouted to God for his
great mercy.

My father's family had all practiced dancing, and
I was fond of it; and the next day after my con-
version my sister urged me to dance with her. I
reluctantly consented to do so, not being sufficiently
aware of the sin and folly of such amusements.
After I had danced two or three rounds with her I
checked myself with the sudden thought. What am
I doing? I felt immediately that I had done wrong,
ran off and left her, and hid myself in the haymow,

PAUL BRODBECK. 393

where I commenced again to cry for mercy. I went
mourninff for about five weeks on account of this
sin, when at a class meeting God again, for Christ's
sake, gave me a conscience void of offense, and I
could once more rejoice with joy unspeakable and full
of glory.

Now a fearful storm of persecution commenced
against me on the part of my father's family. My
father declared that he would no longer own me for
his son, while my brothers and sisters disavowed me
for their brother. They said I had disgraced the
family by becoming a Methodist; but God's grace was
sufiicient for me, and I went on my way rejoicing. I
had a great desire to labor for the welfare of others,
and in the year 1839 I received license to exhort,
and for five years I exhorted among the English ; and
during all this time I prayed earnestly that God
would, in his good providence, open a door for me
to do something among the Germans. Finally, brother
William Nast and brother Adam Miller, and other
German preachers, came to Portsmouth to look after
the welfare of their countrymen in that place. A
mission was established, and the Lord revived his
work among the Germans. Many were converted,
among whom were two of my brothers and their
wives, who also joined the Methodist Church. Not
long afterward another of my brothers was converted,
and became a member of the Church.

In 1845 I commenced to preach in the Portsmouth
mission, and in the fall of the same year I was re-
ceived into the conference and appointed to the
Wheeling mission. Hitherto the Lord hath stood
by me and helped me.

394 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

EXPERIENCE OF FREDERIC SCHULEK.

I was born on the 29th of May, 1826, in the grand
duchy of Baden, Germany. My parents Avere mem-
bers of the Evangelical Protestant Church, in the
doctrines of which I was brought up. My father
died in my thirteenth year, so that I and my younger
brother were left entirely to the care of our widowed
mother.

In my sixteenth year I was put to a trade ; and by
being thrown into vain and irreligious associations
I took part in the wicked practices of the world, and
became a giddy and Sabbath-breaking young man.
In the summer of 1846 I worked in Schlettstatt, in
Elsas. Here, one Sunday morning, quite unexpect-
edly my younger brother brought me the astonishing
news that mother had received a letter from our older
brother, George, who, ten years before, had gone to
America, and that she was now determined also to
go herself.

On the 25th of October, 1846, we left our father-
land, and on the 2d of November we took ship at
Havre for New Orleans, where we landed safe on
the 30th of December of the same year. Our brother
George lived at that time four miles from St. Louis,
Missouri, where, for six years, he had been a member
of the German Methodist Church, and through the
labors of brother Jacoby had been converted to God.

Our journey from New Orleans was a very tedious
one, yet we finally all arrived safely at our brother's.
The joy of meeting again, after a ten years' separa-
tion, was, of course, very great.

In the earlier years of his residence here, my

FREDERIC SCHULER. 395

brother had written that wild game was very abundant,
and that sporting and hunting were his greatest
pleasure on the Sabbath day; but the letter contain-
ing an account of his awakening and conversion was
lost, and never came to us. We knew that he and
his family were Methodists, but had not the most
distant idea of what it meant to be a Methodist.

Instead, therefore, of going on a chase after wild
game, as I expected, and wished him to do, he brought
out his team and took us all along with him to St.
Louis to Church. Gladly would I have refused to go,
as I had no taste nor desire for religious services,
yet I was ashamed to refuse, and went ; and never
shall I forget that day. Brother Jost was at that
time preacher in the Wash-Street Church. I was
pleased with the sermon, for I could understand what
the man said.* The light of divine truth was kindled
in my heart, and there arose in my bosom some
severe struggles. I disputed with my brother George
on every point, and sought to justify myself as much
as possible, yet all in vain; for God's word and my
own conscience were against me. Finally, the last
reed on which I leaned — my dependence on my bap-
tism and confirmation — broke to pieces. The sermons
of brother Jost struck me like a hammer to break
my stubborn heart, and brought me like a poor sinner
to the feet of the Lamb. Through faith I was
enabled to take refuge in my blessed Savior, in whom
my soul found rest, and peace, and joy in the Holy
Ghost.

"■•• In Germany some of the rationalistic philosophers have so mys-
tified the plain teachings of the Bible that the common people can
scarcely understand what they say.

396 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

After I had been received into full membership I
was intrusted with a class. Notwithstanding my ob-
jections to it, brother Kuhl soon gave me license to
exhort. But with all my anxiety and desire for the
salvation of others, the brethren could not get me to
consent to take license to preach — such were my views
of the great responsibilities of this work that I
shrunk from the task; and to rid myself of these
obligations I removed to Galena, Illinois. There I
fell into the hands of brother Plank, presiding elder
of the Iowa district. I finally yielded to the judg-
ment of my brethren, and my own convictions of duty,
and set out in this work. I have had some hard fields
of labor and privations to which I had not been accus-
tomed, but gladly will I endure all these things for
the Gospel's sake. I am resolved to spend the re-
mainder of my days in the service of God and the
Church.

EXPERIENCE OF HENRY ELLERBECK.

I was born in Bongolzhausen, Prussia, November
28, 1818. My parents endeavored to be religious,
although they had not then any experimental knowl-
edge of religion, and to inculcate correct principles
into my mind. Neither preacher nor teacher knew
any thing about heart-felt religion ; indeed, it was
quite unknown in our neighborhood. When I set out
for America, my mother said to me, " Keep God be-
fore your eyes, and depart not from him, and it will
be well with you."

In my early youth I had a great desire for salva-
tion, and sometimes was greatly affected, especially in
partaking of the eucharist. There were times when

HENRY ELLERBECK. 397

I prayed earnestly to God to be saved. When doubts
arose about my salvation, I comforted myself "with
my good works, because I considered myself as good
as any one, and if I should not attain to heaven, who
else would ? But, notwithstanding these early impres-
sions, I became indifferent with regard to my eternal
welfare, so that when I emigrated to America, I
would not have taken any religious book along ; but
my sister gave me a Bible.

In the month of October, 1844, I bade farewell to
my parents and friends, and in the course of a few
weeks landed safely at New Orleans, and pursued my
way to Hermann, Missouri, where I met my uncle,
who had settled there a few years before. He had
united with the Methodist Episcopal Church, and had
become a new creature in Christ Jesus. The Meth-
odists soon gathered about me, and spoke to me about
religion, and directed my attention to the welfare of
my immortal soul. They invited me also, very kindly
and earnestly, to attend their meetings. The first
meeting that I attended in this country was a quar-
terly meeting, held by Rev. L. S. Jacoby and Rev.
Charles Koeneke. I was very much pleased with the
meeting, and became also deeply convinced of my
sinfulness. I saw clearly that I must be born again
to be fit for heaven. I could not help loving this
people, and so I joined them immediately. I began
now to search the Scriptures more than I ever had
done before, and sought the Lord, with tears and sup-
plication, day and night, praying him to pardon my
sins, to change my heart, and to give me the witness
of his Spirit that I was a child of God,

After a few weeks I left my uncle, and took up my

398 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

residence in another neigliborliood, eight miles dis-
tant, where I heard much against religion, and nothing
in favor of it. It was consequently not surprising
that I found much opposition, and had to endure
many trials, so that the enemy nearly triumphed over
me. As the nearest Methodist appointment was eight
miles distant I could not regularly attend the meet-
ings, but went once in a while, where I was always
encouraged to continue seeking the Lord. When I
came in contact again with the irreligious people
among whom I lived, I became indifferent, and made
up my mind to leave the Methodists and to go back
to the world. But the thought of being lost forever
occupied my mind so much that I fell on my knees
and prayed the Lord to show me the right way ; and
now I can say, to the glory of God, that he heard my
prayer, and brought me from this wicked place into a
Christian family. Here I again visited the meetings
regularly, and sought the Lord more earnestly, till,
after a lapse of eighteen months, contending with sin,
unbelief, and doubts, I experienced, during a two- days'
meeting, held by Rev. C. Eisenmeier, in June, 1846,
that my Redeemer liveth. The Lord adopted me into
his family, and I was happy in his love.

In my youth, when I heard of the heathen, I was
often deeply affected, and wished that they might
hear of Christ, and even had a desire to go to them
and tell them of the Savior of the world. Notwith-
standing all this, I never thought of becoming a
preacher. After my conversion I felt as though I
should do something for the Lord. At that time I
worked in a flour-mill, where I had the opportunity
of distributing many religious tracts, and speaking to

HENEY ELLERBECK. 899

the p^ple about their eternal welfare, and inviting
them to the meetings. It was my desire for all men
to be turned to God ; but I dismissed the thought of
ever becoming a preacher, for I did not consider my-
self qualified for such an office.

In 1848 I was appointed class-leader. This office
appeared so important to me that, on the day when I
should lead the class for the first time, I could neither
eat nor drink. The following year I received license
to exhort, which I accepted with fear and trembling.
In July, 1850, I was requested to go out as a mis-
sionary. This caused me a great struggle. I had
entered the married state only a few weeks before,
had one hundred acres of land on which I could
have lived, and was just ready to go into partnership
with the miller, in whose service I had been. The
bright prospect of a comfortable life came before me,
on one hand; but, on the other, the important call of
the Church. While I meditated on this subject night
and day, and prayed earnestly to God, the thought
struck me. If I stay at home and a single soul should
be lost on account of my disobedience, how could I
give an account before God ? This thought decided
the matter, whereupon I went to my field of labor.
During the past eight years the Lord has been with
me, and he has blessed my feeble efforts in promoting
his cause. To Him be all the glory !

400 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

CHAPTER XXXI.

F. MERTEN — CHRISTIAN N A C H TRI EB — GER-
HARD TIMKEN — H. SCHNITTKER.

EXPERIENCE OF FREDERIC MERTEN.

Having been instructed in the truths of the Gospel
in early youth, and brought up under the influence
of praying parents, my youthful heart received many
religious impressions; and frequently when I had
done wrong I felt conscious that I was guilty before
God. In my fifteenth year I approached with a sin-
stricken heart to God, and could also claim his
promises; but having no clear conceptions of the
plan of salvation I did not exercise saving faith, and
so continued to live after the fashion of this world.
Although I did not commit open wickedness, yet I
continued a worldling. Frequently I heard the warn-
ing voice of the word of God. In my eighteenth year
I was troubled in mind as I never had been before,
and felt a pressure upon me that I could not explain.

I lived at that time near St. Charles, Missouri,
where we had a preacher, but whether he was con-
verted or not I can not say, yet his sermons were
searching. The anguish of my heart constrained me
at last to go to this preacher, who advised me to pour
out my heart before God, which I did immediately.
I felt only too well that I needed his grace. I con-
tinued praying, till it was said in my heart, Be

PKEDERIC MERTEN. 401

quiet I the Lord is doing thee good. Put thy trust in
God, he will do all things well. And now my load
of sin was gone ; I felt peaceful in my heart, and
enjoyed the sweet and blessed communion with God.
I began earnestly to search the Scriptures, and my
Avcak faith was strengthened by the truths of the
Gospel, into which I was led by the Spirit of God.
I kept on with prayer and supplication, and drew
steadily nearer to God, whose love and goodness
became so sweet to me, that I regarded my youthful
companions and their worldly pleasures as dross,
and desired that all might rejoice with me in the God
of my salvation.

I may remark here that I did not know at that
time what this change was called ; nor, indeed, was
my ignorance removed till several years afterward,
when I attended a class meeting of our English
brethren in Iowa. While they communicated their
experience, it became clear to me that I had once
been converted. But having been deprived of the
means of grace, and surrounded with many tempta-
tions, I had lost the peace of heart, which grieved me
very greatly. I resolved anew to serve God ; but,
alas ! the strength was wanting, and all my resolutions
were in vain. All hope seemed to be gone, when
I once more experienced the peaceful operations of
the Spirit of God. I felt that I was lost, and could
hardly venture to pray for mercy, because I had
grieved the Spirit of God for so long a time. The
question arose now, What must I do? I finally came
to the happy conclusion to throw myself into the
merciful arms of God. I began to pray and wrestle

with God, and asked, Is there yet mercy for me?
34

402 aERMAN MISSIONARIES.

then let it be extended to me, a poor sinner. Then
I heard a still small voice in my heart, saying, There
is yet mercy ! Immediately the scales fell from my
eyes, and although it was night, yet the heaven
seemed to be as bright as day. A new song was put
in my mouth, and I could go my way rejoicing.

I kept my conversion to myself, for there was
nobody to whom I could communicate it, till soon
afterward Rev. Mr. Korfhage, a German Methodist
preacher, delivered a sermon in our neighborhood on
Rom. i, 16, " For I am not ashamed of the Gospel
of Christ." I had to assent to every thing that was
said. The Gospel is the power of God to save. I
felt it; but, alas! I had not confessed the Lord as I
ought to have done, and resolved now never to be
ashamed again of my Savior. I promised to do it
at the first opportunity that presented itself; and did
it, too, but not without a great struggle. But I
realized the words , of the apostle when he says,
"With the heart man believeth unto righteousness,
and with the mouth confession is made unto salva-
tion." My heart was filled with unspeakable joy.
Since that time I have enjoyed much of the grace
of God.

Before ever I had found peace with God, I felt
it to be my duty to exhort my fellow-men, and to
lead them in the path of life, which I also did as
often as the opportunity presented itself to me.
Sometimes a thought like the following rose up before
my mind : You exhort others, and yet you can not
help yourself. However, I commenced holding meet-
ings by singing, prayer, and reading of a sermon.
The Lord began to revive his work soon after. The

FREDERIC MERTEN. 403

inquiry was made, What must I do to be saved?
My own soul became quickened, and others were
converted to God. We were not yet members of the
Methodist Episcopal Church at that time, but we were
on intimate terms with our English brethren, so that
I was frequently requested to lead their class and
prayer meetings. And because we were not visited
by any German preacher, we united with our English
brethren.

Brother Mann, a German Methodist preacher, came
soon afterward, and a German class was formed, and
I was appointed leader. This occurred in the spring
of 1848. Rev. L. S. Jacoby came shortly afterward
and administered the sacrament, on which occasion
he licensed me to exhort. He gave me also excellent
instructions, which I never will forget. I tried to use
my single talent faithfully, till a year afterward, when
brother Eisenmeier, who was presiding elder at that
time, at a camp meeting at Sherles Mount, requested
me to preach. This was quite unexpected, and I
said, I can not do it ! But he encouraged me, and
gave me the advice to seek the help of God. I prom-
ised to make the trial, if it were the will of God.
As I had scarcely an hour's time for preparation, I
retired to the woods, fell down on my knees, praying
God to give me a text. In a short time the following
words were presented to my mind : " For God so
loved the world," etc. John iii, 16. This was a good
text; but what shall I speak? This was also made
clear to my mind. The signal was given, and I
hurried to the desk, where all were waiting for me.
The Lord blessed my feeble effort. The same day
I received license to preach.

404 GEEMAN MISSIONARIES.

In the spring of 1850 I was requested to enter the
traveling ministry. I was not willing to go unless I
should be convinced that it was the will of God. This,
too, was made clear to me. I went in the name of
the Lord, and tried to prepare for the first sermon,
but I had to struggle with many difficulties. I reached
my appointment, entered the pulpit, opened the Bible,
when the following text met my eyes, " The Spirit of
the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to
preach the Gospel to the poor," etc. Luke iv, 18.
The blessing of the Lord rested upon me, and I could
realize that I, too, might claim this precious promise.
All doubts about my calling were removed, and thus
I continued to labor, relying on God, who has ever
been faithful to me, his poor and feeble servant, giving
me many seals of my ministi-y, who have found peace
in the blood of the Lamb. To him be all the glory!
Nine years have passed since I left my home to be a
pilgrim in the world, where we have no continuing
city. However, I am not wearied, and am willing to
go onward in this way, till the Lord shall say unto
me, " It is enough."

EXPERIENCE OF CHRISTIAN NACHTRIEB.

I was born on the 26th of November, 1825, in the
kingdom of Wirtemberg, Germany. My parents be-
longed to the so-called Pietists, and I had a great de-
sire to go to their meetings. I sometimes attended
them, and they produced good impressions upon my
mind. We had, among our books, Hoifacker's Ser-
mons, which often awakened me to a sense of my sin-
ful condition, so that I was affected to tears. My
father often exhorted and admonished me ; yet, as I

< CHRISTIAN NACnTRIEB. 405

grew up, my heart was inclined to go in the way of
destruction.

I was carefully instructed in the doctrines of the
Lutheran Church, but I was not much affected in my
confirmation. The reason of this was the recklessness
of our pastor ; yet, by the admonitions of my father,
I was led to form some good resolutions, and often,
on reading missionary reports, a wish arose in my
mind to be a missionary, if I only had the grace and
the talents for such a work. Some years afterward
my father died, and this was another call upon me to
repent, and I kept myself away from vain company,
and began to pray earnestly ; but it appeared to me
that the more I prayed the more I felt the sentence
of condemnation in my heart. However, as I was
one Sunday morning in my stable, I fell on my knees
and commenced praying. Suddenly a strange feeling
came over me. I felt inexpressibly joyful, and every
thing appeared new. All nature seemed to wear a
new aspect ; but this, alas ! did not continue long. I
was soon in such temptation that all appeared dark,
and I was led to believe it was a delusion.

About this time my brother wrote to me from
America, and gave me a simple and plain account
of his conversion. From that hour I had a strong
desire to go to America; and in the year 1848 I,
with a number of others, set out for this country,
and by the good providence of God we landed safe in
New York on the 18th of May. From thence I went
to Philadelphia, where I met my sister and brother-in-
law. After several weeks I went to Baltimore, where
my brother lived, and in a short time we started
together on a journey to the west. My brother re-

406 GERMAN MISSIONARIES. >

mained in Chicago, and I proceeded to my uncle's,
Charles Nachtrieb, in Detroit, Michigan. He be-
longed to the Methodist Church, and soon after my
arrival C. Hehvig came to us as preacher. The
oftener I visited the Methodist meetings the better
I liked their mode of worship and their preaching ;
but especially the plain and pointed exhortations of
brother Helwig found their way to my heart.

Soon afterward brother Riemenschneider, the pre-
siding elder, came along, and more fully discovered to
me my sinful and corrupt heart, and I concluded that
my brother had told him my character, as he described
my case so well ; and I was disposed to think ill of
my brother on this account. The next evening, after
brother Riemenschneider preached, an invitation was
given for penitents to come forward for the prayers
of the Church. I was ashamed to go then ; but the
following night, when the invitation was again given,
as I saw others go, I went too. The most of those
that went forward obtained peace with God ; but I did
not. The temptation came to my mind, first, that my
penitence was too superficial, and God would not bless
me ; and, secondly, that I had sinned away my day
of grace, and there was no hope of mercy for me.
what a wretched condition ! Some days after this,
as I was busily engaged in sawing wood, the impres-
sion came to me, " Without faith it is impossible to
please God ; for he that cometh to God must believe
that he is, and that he will be a rewarder of all them
that seek him," On this my faith laid hold, and I
could at last sing;,

" Praise the Lord, ye ransomed sinners,
fleavenly treasures I have fouml."

^ CHRISTIAN NACHTRIEB. 407

Now it was my delight to sing and to pray with the
people of God, and to let all men know what God had
done for my soul.

This was in the fall of 1848. Some time after my
conversion brother Helwig requested me to take
charge of a class. I excused myself in various ways,
but finally consented. In the year 1850 I received
license to exhort; and in the month of September,
1851, the quarterly conference gave me license to
preach. Notwithstanding I often felt a great desire
to invite sinners to repent, and had many a sorrowful
hour on this subject, yet I believed I should be ex-
cused on the ground of my incompetency for this
great work. In July, 1852, I left the city of Detroit,
solely with a view to relieve myself of this impres-
sion. I took passage on a steamboat on Lake Erie ;
and scarcely had the vessel gotten under way than
such a storm arose that we were in great danger of
being lost. Now I saw my folly, and commenced to
pray, and made a solemn vow that if the Lord would
bring me once more safe to land I would obey his call
and do all he required of me. We arrived at Buffalo,
and from thence I went to Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Unexpectedly I received a letter from my brother, in
the fall, with a request from the presiding elder,
Nicholas Nuhfer, to ask whether I had become will-
ing; to enter into the itinerant work. I thought of
my vow which I had made on Lake Erie, and wrote an
answer that I would go ; and that when the Church was
satisfied that I was not efficient, I could then go home
in peace. I was sent to a new field of labor, where
I at first had great temptation ; for I believed that if
God had called me to preach, the people would soon

408 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

be converted. I told my temptation to my presiding
elder, brother Nuhfer. He said that he had had simi-
lar temptations in his commencement, but directed me
to do as he had done. He thought that as the devil
had not sent him out, he consequently had no right
to send him home. I was, however, permitted to see
the fruits of my labor in the awakening and conver-
sion of poor sinners. I could say much of the won-
ders of God's grace since my commencement in this
work, but I must close. My prayer is that God may
bless this testimony to those who read it.

EXPERIENCE OF GERHARD TIMKEK.

In the year 1837 I landed in New York, and from
thence went to St. Louis, where I became acquainted
with the German Methodists. Our dear brother
Jacoby went there also, and planted the standard of
the cross. A small number were collected around
him and held meetings in a small church in the upper
part of the city. I was at that time, 1842, working
Avith a number of young men in a sugar factory in
the southern part of St. Louis. We heard of this
small society, and out of curiosity we went to hear
the preacher. Here I saw what I had witnessed in
Germany among the Pietists, to whom my parents
belonged. I was pleased with the meetings, yet I
could not then gain my consent to tear myself loose
from the world.

In 1843 I went to New Orleans, where the late
Charles Bremer was carrying on the work of the
Lord. Through his zeal and kindness it pleased
God to bring me to a decision. Several days before
Christmas, during a protracted meeting, I began pub-

GERHARD TIMKEN. 409

licly to seek the Lord ; and, seeking ■with great
earnestness, I found him. About a week afterward
I joined the Methodist Church.

A year passed away, in which we had many joyful
and blessed seasons, and I had many strong and
singular impressions that I ought to preach the Gos-
pel. Sometimes it appeared as if a voice whispered
within me, "Go and proclaim the word of the Lord."
I became alarmed at these impressions, and was
ashamed to harbor such thoughts, viewing them as
the result of my own imagination. I prayed the
Lord to take these thoughts from me, yet the more
I prayed to be delivered from them the stronger they
became. I finally thought this feeling might be from
the Lord. Yet as I was not satisfied on this subject
I concluded to keep the matter to myself. Still I
could not become rid of the impression that I ought
to preach. I went back to St. Louis, and for some
time there was a great conflict in my mind on this
subject, and I knew not what to do.

Brother G. L. Mulfinger was at that time preacher
in the Wash-Street Church in St. Louis, where I
belonged. I wrote to him in reference to my exercise
of mind and requested an answer, desiring to know
Avhether he thought such impressions came from God
or from an evil spirit. Weeks and months passed
away and I received no reply, till one day I took
up the "Christian Apologist," and read an article
on the " Call to the Ministry," signed by G. L. M.
The writer directed all those who have such impres-
sions to make it known to their preachers. Now I
felt that I ought to go and make known my feelings
to my preacher, but still put it off a few months

35

410 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

longer. Finally, in order to find rest for my soul,
I went to brother Mulfingcr and told him that I was
the writer of the letter above alluded to. He told
me that the quarterly conference would soon be held,
and I could then get license to preach and go into
the work. This alarmed me, as I had no idea of
going out into the regular work. All that I desired
was peace of mind and a consciousness that I was
doing my duty. I was, however, willing to follow
the openings of Providence and the call of the
Church.

I received license at the quarterly conference re-
ferred to, and set out upon the work. Eight years
have passed away since I began to labor for the great
Head of the Church in his vineyard. I feel like
devoting myself anew to him, and spending the rem-
nant of my days in his service. May his grace
sustain me, and may I finally return again with joy,
bearing my sheaves with me when the great harvest
shall be gathered home !

EXPERIENCE OF H. SCHNITTKEE.

I was born on the 21st of December, 1833, in the
province of Westphalia, Germany. My parents were
strict in bringing up their children, and I was duly
baptized in the Lutheran Church, the doctrines of
which, after eight years' instruction, became familiar
to me. My parents sought to serve God according
to the best of their knowledge, and regularly read
their morning and evening prayers out of Benjamin
Schmallkinn's prayer-book. The children also were
instructed to read their prayers, but they remained
ignorant of the true doctrines of salvation.

H. SCHNITTKEE,. 411

After I arrived at my fourteenth year I was con-
firmed and admitted to the Lord's table, during which
solemn service the Lord wrought powerfully on my
youthful heart. In my fifteenth year my parents sent
me from home to learn a trade. The man to Avhom I
went belonged to a community of Pietists, and he had
prayers in his family night and morning. This had a
good effect on me. Li the second year of my appren-
ticeship my father died. The last visit I made to my
father he called me to his bedside, as I was about to
leave home, and extended to me his emaciated hand,
and held me for some time without saying a word.
Finally, his pale lips quivered, and the tears started
from his eyes, as he said to me, " Good-night, Henry."
I departed, but with what feelings no one can tell, un-
less placed in similar circumstances. After I had
gone about half an hour I, for the first time, bowed
my knees in prayer, with a broken heart, praying God
to give my father peace in death. At this time the
Spirit of God worked powerfully in my heart. I had
some knowledge of the necessity of the renewal of
my heart, yet, alas ! I was still deluded by this world.
In a few days the sad intelligence came that my father
was dead, and when I learned how earnestly he prayed
in his last hours I had a hope of his happiness here-
after.

In the year 1852 I resolved to go to America, and
in the spring of said year I was ready for my journey,
and in company with my associates I went heedlessly
toward the ocean. I was passionately fond of card-
playing, so much practiced on the dangerous sea voy-
age across the ocean. After we had arrived in New
Orleans we started for St. Louis. In St. Louis I

]

412 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

found, to my joy, one of my friends, with whom I
staid two months. He was a member of the Meth-
odist Church. When they had religious services I
also attended, and continued constantly to do so. One
evening in a prayer meeting I was deeply impressed,
and formed the resolution to join this Church, which
I soon afterward did. Yet I was not clear in my
mind in reference to the necessity of the new birth ;
my constant aim was to live in strict morality ; but, as
it happens with all who seek in this way to improve
themselves, so it also went with me. Thus I remained
an unconverted sinner, being suspended between light
and darkness.

The time arrived when the Methodists of St. Louis
held their camp meeting. I went to it, more out of
curiosity than to seek for God's blessing. In the
commencement I did not like the meeting, but as I
had no opportunity of returning home I remained at
the meeting. Christ, the faithful Shepherd, who had
often knocked at the door of my heart, appeared
again and wrought powerfully on me through that
which I saw and heard. The preaching of God's
word, the prayers of the pious, and the cries of
penitent seekers, made a wholesome impression upon
my heart. My sins appeared as if written in a book
before me, and I saw them in a clear light. I com-
menced praying for a clean heart; but the more I
prayed the more fearful my sins appeared before me.
Brother Havighorst, when he noticed how I stood
trembling under the load of my sins, asked me to
go to the altar for prayer, but I refused, from fear
that I would grow worse. Again the invitation was
given, and again I refused. Finally, brother Kuhl

H. SCHNITTKEK. 413

came along and took me by the arm, saying, " Come,
brother, we will find a place for you," and led me for-
ward to the altar of prayer. Now I was enabled to
look to the Savior by faith, and as I beheld him my
load of sins vanished away, and I became a new crea-
ture in Christ Jesus.

Three years I went forward joyfully in the way to
life, and then I stood still. That there is no standing
still in the religious life my sad experience confirms.
I went to class meetings, to church, and to the holy
sacrament, and used those means of grace Avhich are
helps to the pilgrim toward heaven ; but one thing —
to my sorrow I say it — was neglected, and that was,
the closet of prayer. The enjoyment from above
vanished by degrees, and the result was that the yoke
of Christ was no longer easy, but was a burden to
me — no enjoyment in God, and no enjoyment in the
world ; what a sad condition ! I could not remain in
this state. The world presented its charms, and I
drew back from the Church. Many a pious heart
mourned over me, especially the preacher in charge ;
and ardent prayers ascended to a throne of grace for
me. I was also aAvare of my sad condition ; but
again to humble myself, and seek for the lost treasure,
was too much for my proud heart.

Satan now sought to make me believe that my con-
version had all been a delusion, and thus make me
doubt the great truths of religion. Gladly would I
have become an unbeliever at that time; yet the
recollection of what I had enjoyed in the service of
God remained impressed upon my mind. In viewing
nature around me, I saw it to be impossible that all
the order and operations of nature were the efi'ect of

414 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

blind chance. Night and day I was tormented with
fears. When I lay down at night, my conscience told
me that if I should die to-night I am a child of per-
dition. I could not live in this way, and again longed
for the liberty of the children of God; yet to my
disijrace be it said that for more than two months I
lived in the sinful delusions of the world. As often
as I think of it I feel like thanking God that he did
not call me to judgment in this condition.

The St. Louis camp meeting of 1855 approached,
and I went with firm reliance on the mercy of God
that he would again receive me. With my sorrowful
and heavy-laden heart 1 saw the place where 1 had
first been permitted to feel the power of the world to
come. Deeply pained at the recollection of my back-
sliding, I wept and prayed, and Avent all day long
with my head bowed down. 1 was tempted to be-
lieve that I had committed an unpardonable sin, and
was on the borders of despair ; yet, blessed be God !
Christ can impart the gifts of his grace to the rebel-
lious also. Near the close of the camp meeting I
received power to believe again, Jesus was mine, his
blood and merits were mine, and I was saved ! The
language of my heart was then, and still is. Praise
the Lord for his mercy ! 1 now felt that God had a
work for me to do, and 1 did not close my ears to the
heavenly calling. I entered the conference, and am
now endeavoring to point out the way of life to my
fellow-men.

May this testimony to the grace and mercy of God
be made a blessing to all who read it !

STATISTICS. 415

CHAPTER XXXII.

STATISTICS OF GERMAN METHODISM.

It will be a matter of great interest to all who are
looking for the spiritual regeneration of Germany, to
glance at the progress and triumphs of the evangel-
ical party for the past ten years. After the revolu-
tions of 1848, it was greatly feared by the compara-
tively few men of this party, that the forming and
molding of the new Church relations would, in a good
degree, fall into the hands of those Avho were the
avowed enemies of true religion and ungodly in their
lives. When a proposition was made for a General
Synod, to be convened at Berlin, such was the fear of
the truly-evangelical party with regard to the pre-
ponderating influence of the rationalistic element, that
the Rev. Frederic RingsdroflF published the following
protest against sending delegates to the proposed
synod. He says:

" The state is now abolishing the connection in
which it has hitherto stood to the Church, and prom-
ises, in future, to abstain from all meddling with ec-
clesiastical affairs. It has therefore been proposed to
convoke a General Synod, in order to consult and fix
upon a new organization of the Evangelical Church.
The resolutions passed by this Synod are expected to
be concurred in by the people. According to the
plan proposed, all the members of the Evangelical

416 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

Church, that is, all who call themselves evangelical,
have the right to elect the delegates to the Genera]
Synod.

" But who can not see that if the proposed synod
shall effect any good, the election must take place ac-
cording to the principle laid down in Acts vi, 3, where
St. Peter required that the deacons that were to be
selected should be men full of wisdom and of the
Holy Ghost! But, alas! the proposed election is to
be founded on entirely different principles. Every
one who is not under civil censures, that is, all those
who have never been accused of theft, murder, etc.,
have the right to vote for the delegates. They must,
indeed, call themselves evangelical. But what kind
of characters do we find among those who call them-
selves evangelical?

"Answer 1. Openly -vicious men, drunkards, forni-
cators, adulterers, etc.

"2. Such of whom the Bible says, they are liars
and antichrists. 1 John ii, 22. Many call themselves
evangelical who openly deny the supernatural con-
ception of Christ, the atoning efficacy of his blood,
shed on the cross, and the fact of his resurrection
from the dead and ascension to heaven.

" 3. Such as, although they are not open enemies
of Christianity, yet show, by their walk and conver-
sation, an entire indifference toward the Lord and his
word. Though orthodox in profession, you find them,
on Sunday, in the tavern, in the theaters, at the card-
table, etc. You hear them profane the name of God,
and you never see them blush but when they happen
to sit down at a table where a blessing is asked, or
the name of Jesus is mentioned.

STATISTICS. 417

" Now, inasmucli as the characters mentioned under
numbers 1, 2, and 3, form the great majority, and the
true members of the mystical body of Christ only a
small minority, in the Evangelical Church, "what can
we expect? Answer. Nothing else but that the open
and secret enemies of the cross will have the as-
cendency in the General Synod, and that the Lord
and his word will not be glorified by that assembly,
but rather be put to open shame. Therefore, brethren,
let us pray, and prevent, if possible, the coming to-
gether of a General Synod, which will be like that in
which the high-priest, and through him Satan him-
self, presided, and in which the Son of God was de-
clared a blasphemer, and the holy One condemned to
the ignominious death of the cross.

"Brethren, if you do not wish to hear soon from
Berlin a proclamation, either in an open and undis-
guised manner, or concealed under fair and hypocrit-
ical terms, to the effect, that the venerable creed of
the Reformers, which they have sealed with their
blood, are old wives' fables, unworthy of the intelli-
gence of our age — if you do not wish this, then you
must needs take the sword of the Spirit, and contend
earnestly, in private and public, with the word of God,
with prayer and supplication, against this proposed
General Synod. Brethren, be not deceived ! You
know how long the hearts of believers have longed
and prayed that another and a better time might come
for the Church of God; that a Church discipline,
founded upon the word of God, might stem the tor-
rent of ungodliness, and prevent the profanation of
the Lord's supper. But the proposed General Synod
is not the tree which will bear the sweet fruit of evan-

418 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

gelical spirit and zeal, namely, an apostolic Church
discipline. Those longings which the Spirit of God
produced in our hearts will, in all probability, re-
bound from the hearts of that assembly, like an ar-
row from an iron shield. How, indeed, should those
who have gone so long without any restraint, want to
have any thing to do with Church discipline ?

" But what shall we do if, in a few days or weeks,
we shall be invited by our superiors to take part in
the formation of this Synod? I answer, let us reso-
lutely protest against it, and have nothing to do with
it ; for the word of God tells us plainly, not to be
unequally yoked together with unbelievers; and what
communion hath light with darkness? Therefore, let
us pray, testify, warn ; and if the moment arrives
when violence shall usurp the place of right, we will
not be guilty of having slept when it was our duty to
w^atch, pray, and labor. And may the Lord — the
crucified and risen Lord — who still sits upon the
throne, and whose scepter no revolution can take
away, look upon us in mercy, and strengthen his peo-
ple, that they may stand firm as a rock in these peril-
ous times !"

It is only ten years ago since this protest was made
against the calling of a General Synod, from a fear
that the infidelity of a majority of the clergy might
exert a blasting and deleterious influence upon the
interests of religion. But in what condition do Ave
find the German Protestant Church now? A won-
derful change has been effected in the last ten years.
The monster. Rationalism, has been crushed under the
ponderous weight of Gospel truth.

" Within the memory of many yet living the ortho-

STATISTICS. 419

dox Professor Knapp, at Halle, Avho had seven
hundred theological students, wrote to a Moravian
brother: 'The Lord answered my prayer to give me
one scholar that believes in Christ.' Not many years
ago Dr. Tholuck had to complain: 'The professed
ministry of Christ has destroyed the temple of their
Lord. The doctors of divinity, clad in their official
robes, with violent hands have torn the Lord Jesus
from his throne, and placed in his stead a phantom,
which they call reason.' But, thanks be to God!
' they are dead which sought the young child's life.'
The Spirit of the Lord swept again through the
length and breadth of the land of the Reformation,
and the dry dead bones that have been buried for half
a century in the sand of a lifeless orthodoxy, and for
another half century in the dark caverns of infidelity,
were brought to life. Rationalism is now totally over-
thrown and put to shame and confusion, not only by
the theological but by the philosophical schools of
Germany. From the cathedra and the pulpit, from
popular and learned literature, from universities and
common schools, even from some ecclesiastical con-
sistories and royal courts, streams of living water are
proceeding, refreshing many thirsty souls, and prom-
ising to change the wilderness into a garden of the
Lord. Frederic the Great, Voltaire's companion, had
called a theologian an animal without reason, and,
behold! his descendant invites the evangelical Chris-
tians of all countries to hold a conference in his cap-
ital, attends that conference in person, and desires,
individually, to shake hands with the members of the
Alliance in his own palace. Well did the president
of the Alliance, in addressing the king, remark : ' His

420 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

majesty had seen many imposing armies, but never
one like the present — an army not arrayed in ordinary
military attire, but ready to fight the battles of the
King of kings with the sword of the Spirit, the shield
of faith, and the helmet of salvation.' Truly a little
one became a thousand, and a small one a strong na-
tion. The Lord hastened it. What a marvelous
change !" (Dr. Nast, in Methodist Quarterly Review,
July, 1858, page 434.)

Should more liberal principles gain an ascend-
ency, and free and unrestricted religious liberty be
given to those outside of the pales of the National
Church, there will be a great and effectual door
opened to the Methodist Episcopal Church, with her
itinerating system and religious publications.

As another indication of the great change which
has taken place in a few years past, we may refer
to the fact that the German committee of the Evan-
gelical Alliance, consisting of Dr. Krummacher, Pre-
late Kapff, Dr. Von Hoffman, and other distinguished
divines, invited Dr. Nast to meet them at the World's
Convention, and address that distinguished body on
American Methodism. Nothing can more clearly
indicate a disposition and even a strong desire on
the part of the committee to have an impartial report,
than the fact that Dr. Nast was appointed to deliver
his address immediately after the report of Professor
Schaff, of Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, on Religion in
America; especially when it was known that the Pro-
fessor had entertained and expressed unfriendly sen-
timents toward German Methodism. The marked at-
tention and the unanimous response of a hearty amen
from the large assembly, together with the warm

(

STATISTICS. 421

expressions of brotherly fellowship to Dr. Nast at
the close of his address by some of the most distin-
guished ministers of the Lutheran Church, all evince
a deep interest in the progress of vital godliness. In
addition to this they invoked the blessing of the Lord
upon our mission work among the Germans, and
asked brother Nast for our Discipline and our prin-
cipal German Methodist publications, which, as he
told them in his address, his German brethren in
America had furnished him for gratuitous distribu-
tion. The German committee also oifered to pay
brother Nast's traveling expenses, which offer his
German brethren generously refused, preferring to
pay his expenses, as well as make the donation of
books above referred to ; thus giving evidence of the
deep interest they feel in letting their father-land
know what blessings they have received through the
influence of Methodism.

I will mention in this connection one more favorable
indication for the spread of spiritual light in Germany.
They are now publishing a new Evangelical Church
paper, as the organ of the Evangelical Alliance, and
Dr. Nast has been invited to become a contributor
to it, thus opening another door for the spread of
evangelical truth in Germany.

We here present an exhibit of German Methodism,
for which we are indebted to Dr. Nast :

" German Methodism, when dated from the forma-
tion of the first German Methodist society, reported
to the Ohio conference in the fall of 1838, is just
twenty years old. The writer of this was then the
only missionary, and reported 30 members to the con-
ference. Now we have, inclusive of probationers,

422 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

19,980 in Church fellowship. Our increase during the
past year was 2,722, while 171 took their transfer
from the Church militant to the Church triumphant.
During the twenty years of its existence the Ger-
man work has had, on an average, a net increase of
1,000 per year. But if we would count those of our
members, who, during these twenty years, have died
in the Lord, and those who, after the division of the
Church, fell under the care of the Methodist Episco-
pal Church South, and those of our children who
joined the English Church, the whole addition of
German members to the Methodist Episcopal Church,
in the space of twenty years, would be about 25,000.
" Again, our own Church — for we shall, in our fur-
ther remarks, take no more notice of the German
work in the Church South — has employed during the
twenty years, on an average, every succeeding year,
12 missionaries more, so that their number is now
240. We have 281 houses of worship, and 111 par-
sonages, valued at $508,063, which would make an
addition of about |25,000 worth of Church property jj
per year, for twenty years.* In the acquisition of
Church property the Germans have, at least, during
the last ten years, borne as heavy a part of the bur-
den as members of the Church generally have to bear
in building houses of worship and parsonages. Our
American brethren have no conception how much our
German members give in this respect; how every
society is visited by one or more German agents every
year. Many of our missions would have made them-

-■■ To give a correct statement of Church property, the remaining
debt should, also, be reported to conference ; but it is done only in »
few conferences, and I could, therefore, not mention it here.

STATISTICS. 423

selves free from the support of the Missionary So-
ciety at an earlier period, or to a greater extent, had
it not been for their heavy responsibilities in building
churches.

" Our Sunday school exhibit is also cheering, with
the exception of one point. The number of our
scholars is too small, compared with the number of
teachers. We have 357 schools, 3,251 teachers and
officers, 14,124 scholars, and 37,052 books in the
libraries. We ought to do much more for the rising
generation of the German population of this country;
but we have to contend with many difficulties, one of
which is a lack of sufficient sympathy and interest on
the part of our own Church in behalf of the Crerman
Sabbath schools connected with her missions, arising
from the often-expressed fear that our German Sab-
bath schools will have the tendency unnecessarily to
perpetuate the German language in this country.
This fear is unfounded. There is no danger of our
German children not learning the English language,
though we may not give them English instruction in
our own German Sabbath schools. They have ample
opportunity to learn English in our public schools,
and attend, wherever it is practicable, the English
Sabbath schools of our Church, besides our German
mission schools. If it were not so, if the fear I have
alluded to were well grounded, why are our often-re-
peated appeals to our American brethren, to furnish
us with male and female teachers, to form English
classes in our Sunday schools, so seldom successful?
The truth is, that such service, valuable as it would be
to us in many respects, can not take the place of the
work which, in the providence of God, we are called

424 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

to do for the children of our countrymen. To do
good to the rising generation of the German popuLa-
tion out of our Church, among whom we are sent as
missionaries, and thereby to gain the hearts of the
parents, we must be prepared to give them G-erman
instruction in our Sabbath schools. The opportunities
and inducements for German youth to be trained up
in irreligious principles, through the medium of their
mother tongue, are so many and so strong, that, if we
do not make earnest efforts to bring the German
youth under Cferman, as well as English religious in-
fluence, their German associations will make them the
prey of pernicious principles.

" There is another reason why we need German
Sabbath schools : The German immigration to this
country will not cease for some time to come; we
have only begun to throw the leaven of the Gospel
among them ; we have a greater work before us than
what, by the grace of God, we have been able to do.
But we can not do it without the cooperation of the
rising generation, born and trained up by pious
parents, such as we hope will be the case with a
great part of our children, of whom 2,445 were dur-
ing the last year dedicated to the Lord in baptism.
Some of them will become German missionaries, class-
leaders, and Sunday school teachers; but we need
for this purpose German schools. Will any Amer-
ican brother be so hard-hearted as to deprive the Ger-
man mission work of all this seed-corn? You may
be sure that the greater portion of the children of
German Methodists, when they are grown up men
and women, will be, if at all religious, members of
our English charges, and scarcely any of our grand-

STATISTICS.

425

children will be found in a German Church. But do
not begrudge us to keep a part of the second crop
of our German missionaries as seed-corn for the con-
version of successive immigrations.

" I have thus glanced at the prominent points of the
statistical tables, and I hope the reader will be in-
duced to look at the details. In giving the total num-
ber of the membership I added together full members,
probationers, and local preachers. In calculating the
net increase of membership I followed the same rule,
adding the number of full members to the proba-
tioners and local preachers, as given in the Minutes
of the preceding year, and deducting it from the sum
total of this year."

STATISTICS OF MEMBERSHIP, ETC.

Conferences.

New York

Eock Kiver

Upper Iowa

Cincinnati

North Ohio

South-Eastorn Indiana.

Illinois

Southern Illinois

Home work

California (1857).
Germany .,

Membership.

g

1,473
2,072
1,011
2,420
1,702
2,627
1,827
1,078

14,810
42
755

15,007

542
766
424
337
417
547
481
316

3,740

18

324

4,182

2,046
2,857
1,452
2,780
2,133
3,208
2,330
2,019

18,831

60

1,089

19,980

217
425
238
164
444
406
320
200

2,414
"3O8

2,722

In addition to this satisfactory exhibit of the num-
ber of preachers and members in the different con-
ferences, we present, from the same source, a table

36

426

GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

showing the means employed for extending the influ-
ence of Methodism among our foreign population :

STATISTICS OF CHURCH PROPERTY, ETC.

Conferences.

New York

Eock River

Upper Iowa

Cincinnati

North Ohio

South-Eastern Indiana,

Illinois

Southern Illinois

Home work

California (1857)

Germany

Total

$79,750
83,600
2B,500
71,600
53,300
50,243
65,000
41,410

403
558
219
443
433
384
335
248

2,695
1,955

754
1,703
1,829
1,556
1,348

989

4,767
4,684
1,811
7,975
5,956
4,059
3,464
2,887

285
385
334
367
337
272

$472,063
13,000
23,000

3,083

31

137

12,831

105

1,190

35,603
533
916

2,409
35

1

063 357' 3,251 14,124 37,052 26 2,445

Dr. Nast presents a detailed view of the financial
condition of German Methodism, of which we can
give only the summary. He says :

" The German membership in the states — not reck-
oning the infant work in California and Germany —
amounting to 18,831, gave, in the last conference
year, for the support of the ministry, $44,872.92 —
per member, |2.43, 7 mills ; for conference claimants,
$1,490.52 — per member, 6 cents, 4 mills; for Mis-
sionary Society, $6,946.09 — per member, 33 cents,
3 mills; for tract cause, $501.26 — per member, 2
cents, 5 mills ; for Bible Society, $590.75 — per mem-
ber, 3 cents, 1 mill; for Sunday School Union,
$346.57 — per member, 1 cent, 8 mills. For all these
objects together, $53,920.68— per member, $2.90.5.

STATISTICS. 427

" This exhibit is certainly creditable to the German
■s\'ork. It shows the hearty good-will of a poor peo-
ple to do at least something for each of the benevolent
objects presented by the Church. Might not our
brethren in the ministry make good use of our ex-
hibit in taking up their various collections, by exam-
ining the Minutes of their respective conferences
and comparing the contributions of their societies,
per member, with what the Germans give, per mem-
ber? Yet we wish not to be understood as if we
thought we had any thing to glory of. On the con-
trary, we published the financial survey of the Ger-
man work in the Apologist for the purpose of showing
our membership how far roe are still behind in the
support of the Grospel, and to stimulate to greater ex-
ertions.

" With the above-mentioned reduced appropriations,
if we estimate the support of a German missionary —
we have scarcely any single men — at $500 in the
New York conference, and at $400 in the western
conferences, the Germans will have to raise, during
the present conference year, for the support of their
ministry, per member, in the New York conference,
$1.96; in Rock River, $4.06; in Upper Iowa, $3.59;
in Cincinnati, $2.76; in North Ohio, $2.72; in South-
Eastern Indiana, $2.43 ; in Illinois, $4.45 ; in South-
ern Illinois, $2.87 ; or at an average, taking the
whole German work together, in those eight con-
ferences, per member, $3.11 — not reckoning house-
rent, moving, and traveling expenses.

" In the English work of the Cincinnati conference
the number of preachers is 140, and of members,
30,663. The average amount paid by each member

428 GERMAN MISSIONAEIES.

for the support of the ministry is $1.94; for confer-
ence claimants, 4 cents, 8 mills; for missions, 39
cents, 8 mills; for the Tract Society, 1 cent; for the
Bible Society, 4 cents, 2 mills ; for the Sunday School
Union, 1 cent. The general average for all purposes
is $2.48, 2 mills.

"Is this not as much as should be expected from
the German members with their present numbers?
Some promising new German mission fields in the
different conferences could not be taken up this year;
other fields had to be contracted, and should another
deduction in the appropriations be thought necessary
by the General Mission Committee, to make out the
annual appropriations, the G-erman mission work must
he seriously injured, and its extension heyond its pres-
ent limits prevented. In consequence of being under
the necessity of curtailing our home work, there are
already five missionaries less employed than last year !

"Those who are under the impression that, in view
of our mission funds being needed for China, India,
and other foreign missions, the appropriations for the
German work in this country ought to be still less,
and that the German membership ought to do still
more for the support of the Gospel, I would ask to
compare the amount of the contributions of the Ger-
man membership of the Cincinnati conference, Avith
those of the English membership of the same con-
ference, as shown in the statistics. The Cincinnati
conference, we may suppose, will give, as nearly as
any other, the average amount of the contributions
of the English membership in general. The reader
will see that the Gfennans give per memher more than
the English for the support of the ministry, as well as

STATISTICS. 429

for conference claimants, and the different benevolent
institutions of the Church, with the exception of the
Bible Society, for which both happen to give equally.

"But some may say, 'if the Germans give so much
more than the English, the contrary of what you
wish to prove follows ; that is, the German preachers
are paid better, and should not need the help of the
Missionary Society any longer.' This would cer-
tainly be the case, if the number of the members
were the same in the German and English part. But
how vast is the difference ! The English membership
of the Cincinnati conference is 30,663; that of the
German membership only 2,780. Whoever will think
of this fact, will see at once that the German preacher
can not get so full a support as the English. And
there is another vast difference in the ahility to give,
which exists between the German and English mem-
bership. That part of the German population which
belongs to our Church is, with few exceptions, so
poor that, were they members of the English Church,
scarcely any contribution would be expected of them.
How different is the case with our American breth-
ren! How few of them are so poor as the majority
of German members! How many of them are rich,
wealthy, or at least competent! And yet they give
less per member than their Grermaii brethren. If
they would give for the missionary cause per mem-
ber as much as the Germans give per member, none
of our foreign or home missions would need to be
curtailed.

" In connection with this exhibit of German Mefh-
odism, I would, also, state to what extent the German
Methodists in this country support the publications

430 GERMAN MISSIONARIES.

of our Church. The Apologist has a subscription of
8,900; the Sunday School Bell, 11,100, among a
membership of not quite 19,000. According to an
exhibit made by our Western Book Agents, there
were sold, in the year 1857, of our own German pub-
lications, 37,822 bound volumes, containing 8,196,753
pages, and 2,056,400 pages of tracts, and 4,854 vol-
umes of religious books, imported from Germany."

In thus looking at the progress of German Meth-
odism, both here and in the father-land, we are led to
exclaim, "What hath not God wrought!" But we
confidently believe that these are only the beginnings
of a work still greater; and that the next generation
will behold results almost beyond our conception.
May the good Lord, who has hitherto sustained his
servants in their weakness, be with them in his power,
and grant unto them, according to the riches of his
glory, every gift and grace in their efforts to " spread
Scriptural holiness over these lands !"

THE END.

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